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LIBRARY 

OP  THB 

University  of  California. 

Class 


THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 


THE     CATHOLIC 
CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

FROM   1860  TO  1907 


BT 

KEV.  BERTRAM  WOLFERSTAN,  S.J. 

•II 


LONDON  AND  EDINBUBOH 

SANDS   &   COMPANY 

ST  LOUIS.  MO. 

B.    HERDER,    17   South  Broadway 
1909 


tc/v 


PREFACE 

''By  what  authority  dost  thou  these  things?    And  who  hath  given 
thee  this  authority  ?  "—Matt.  xxi.  23. 

In  any  consideration  of  the  conversion  of  the  non- 
Christian  world  one  fact  becomes  at  once  apparent,  viz., 
that  there  are,  in  the  main,  two  widely  distinct  agencies 
at  work — the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  and  the  innumer- 
able religious  connections  which  compose  the  Protestant 
body. 

It  is  sometimes  maintained  by  benevolent  persons 
that,  as  both  are  working  on  behalf  of  **  our  common 
Christianity,"  they  are  equally  desirable ;  for,  while  at 
variance  as  to  details,  they  are  one  in  all  essentials. 

But  this  condition  is  by  no  means  fulfilled,  as,  far 
from  coinciding  in  essentials,  they  are  not  even  agreed 
in  the  primary  statement  of  what  constitutes  those 
essentials. 

Were  this  division  confined  to  Christendom  the  evil 
would  still  be  sufficiently  serious ;  but  when  it  is  carried 
into  the  presence  of  the  non-Christian  world,  the  harm 
becomes  vastly  augmented.  For  the  heathen  —  by 
which  term  non-Christians  are  usually  described — not 
unnaturally  asks : — **  Why  should  we  adopt  Christianity 
when  its  very  teachers  cannot  agree  among  themselves 
as  to  wherein  precisely  it  consists  ?  " 

One  lamentable  result,  therefore,  seems  likely  to 
accrue  from  this  spectacle  of  a  divided  and  contentious 
Christianity,  viz.,  the  making  of  the  conversion  of  the 
heathen  more  difficult  year  by  year,  and  thus  delaying 


219006 


vi  PREFACE 

indefinitely   the   establishment   of  Christ's    Kingdom 
upon  earth. 

Deplorable  as  such  a  state  of  things  would  be,  it  is 
by  no  means  all.  For,  in  the  assertion  of  their  own 
particular  beliefs,  and  in  controverting  those  of  others, 
such  bitterness  and  strife  has  been  engendered  among 
Christians  themselves — the  test  of  whose  profession 
was  to  be,  ''  By  this  shall  all  men  know  that  you  are 
my  disciples,  if  you  have  love  one  for  another  "  (John  xiii. 
3S) — ^as  to  warrant  the  sceptic  in  his  taunt,  "  See  how 
these  Christians  do  love  one  another ! "  And  this  fact 
has  so  impressed  the  heathen,  that  they  have  been 
known  to  declare  their  conviction  that,  ''heathenism 
with  love  is  better  than  Christianity  without  it."  In 
brief,  the  delivery  by  portions  of  the  Christian  world  of 
the  message  of  salvation  has  been  so  accomplished,  as 
to  convict  the  messengers  out  of  their  own  mouths  of 
the  falsity  of  their  professions,  and  thus  steel  the  heart 
of  the  non-Christian  world  against  the  message  itself. 

Wherefore,  since  so  much  confusion  has  arisen,  and 
such  obscurity  has  clouded  the  judgment  of  Christians 
themselves,  it  becomes  of  the  very  first  importance,  if 
we  would  consider  the  matter  aright,  to  cast  aside  all 
prejudice,  and  divesting  the  case  of  all  side  issues, 
investigate  what  it  is  we  are  endeavouring  to  teach 
those  whom  we  call  "heathen,"  and  what  authority  we 
have  for  so  doing. 

The  Christian  missionary,  then,  appears  before  the 
non-Christian  world  in  one  of  two  capacities.  Either 
he  is  the  merely  earthly  bearer  of  a  merely  human 
message;  or  he  is  the  duly  authorised  herald  of  a 
message  from  Almighty  God.  If  it  is  the  former 
character  in  which  he  appears  there  is  little  to  be  said. 
His  message  being  merely  human,  his  hearers  have  just 
as  much  moral  right  to  their  opinions — ^provided  there 
is  nothing  demonstrably  irrational  in  them — ^as  he  to 
his ;  and  they  or  their  rulers  are  quite  justified  in  their 
resentment  of  any  attempt  to  upset  the  existing  order 


PREFACE  vii 

of  affairs.  But,  if  the  missionary  claims  to  be  the 
properly  accredited  herald  of  a  message  from  Almighty 
God,  it  behoves  him  not  only  to  present  one  which  is  not 
inconsistent  with  any  established  conclusion  of  natural 
science,  or  fact  of  history,  but  also  to  account  for  his 
own  reception  of  a  revelation  from  the  Creator  and 
Lord  of  all  things,  his  authority  to  impart  the  same, 
and  his  ability  to  give  some  assurance  of  his  freedom 
from  error  in  its  transmission. 

That  the  Christian  doctrine  emanated  from  Jesus 
Christ  is  admitted  by  all ;  and  of  His  actual  existence 
upon  earth,  as  a  historical  fact,  there  is  now  no  serious 
dispute  in  any  quarter.  But  whether  this  Christian 
doctrine  was  supernatural,  and  consequently  amounted 
to  a  divine  revelation  or  no,  rests  upon  the  fact  that  He 
had  a  divine  commission ;  and  this  again  depends  on 
whether  He  was  what  He  asserted  Himself  to  be — ^the 
Son  of  God.  The  Christian  contention  is  that  Jesus 
Christ  did  so  prove  this  by  the  manifestation  of  a  power 
more  than  human  over  Nature,  animate  and  inanimate, 
during  His  life,  and  still  more  by  His  own  Resurrec- 
tion. For,  it  is  obvious  that  no  one  could  raise  himsdf, 
of  his  own  power,  from  death  to  life,  unless  he  were  the 
Lord  of  both — in  fact,  God. 

Our  first  duty,  then,  is  to  show,  not  that  the  Gospel 
narrative  describes  the  life  and  actions  of  a  divine 
Being  (for  that  is  obvious,  granting  the  facts  as 
described),  but  that  we  can  be  assured  of  the  absolute 
truth  of  that  narrative.  The  facts  set  forth  rest,  in  the 
first  instance,  on  the  testimony  of  those  that  witnessed 
them.  In  their  case  the  Divinity  of  Christ  was 
proved  by  His  known  character  and  His  wondrous 
works,  especially  the  Resurrection.  As  credible  wit- 
nesses of  those  miracles  they  asked  their  hearers  to 
share  their  convictions,  "  the  Lord  working  withal,  and 
confirming  the  word  with  signs  that  followed"  (Mark 
xvi.  20).  Of  course,  those  converted  owed  both  the 
impulse  to  believe  and  its  result  to  God's  grace,  but 


viii  PREFACE 

their  adhesion  was  won  to  start  with  by  the  demon- 
strated credibility  of  the  witnesses. 

But  now,  mark  the  whole  scope  of  their  message. 
It  embraces  not  only  the  whole  revelation  of  God's 
Nature  and  Attributes,  and  of  man's  duty  towards 
Him  which  was  comprised  in  Christ's  teaching  and 
example,  but  also  the  fact  that  they  had  the  same 
divine  commission  as  He  had,  "As  the  Father  hath 
sent  me,  I  also  send  you"  (John  xx.  21).  We  accept 
that  fact  precisely  on  the  same  grounds  as  we  accept 
the  rest  of  their  message,  the  acceptance  of  which  or 
non-acceptance  (through  ignorance  or  incredulity) 
makes  the  difference  between  Christian  and  non- 
Christian. 

We  may  pause  here  to  dwell  upon  the  supreme 
importance  of  the  Christian  revelation.  It  is  a 
communication  from  the  Creator  of  the  Universe — 
Who  is  Truth  itself — of  certain  facts  concerning 
Himself;  and  also  a  prescription  of  the  nature  of  the 
service  He  desires  from  His  rational  creatures;  in 
order  that  they  may  attain  the  sole  end  for  which 
He  created  them — His  own  glory  and  the  salvation 
of  their  souls.  We  can  best  appreciate  the  value  to 
be  attached  to  that  end  by  considering  the  price  which 
Christ  paid  to  secure  it.  For  it  He  came  on  earth, 
for  it  He  suffered  and  died,  and  for  it  He  commis- 
sioned the  witnesses  of  these  stupendous  events  to 
testify  to  them,  and  teach  His  doctrine  to  all  people. 
It  follows,  then,  immediately,  that  the  divine 
Wisdom,  having  matter  of  such  importance  to 
communicate  to  mankind,  must  have  taken  every 
precaution  to  see  that  the  message  was  clearly  under- 
stood, and  transmitted  in  all  its  integrity.  To  suppose, 
therefore,  that  any  ambiguity  existed  in  Christ's  in- 
structions to  the  first  Christians  is  to  suppose  that 
Almighty  God  made  a  revelation  to  those  whom  He 
selected  to  hand  it  to  their  contemporaries  and  to 
posterity,  being  indifferent   the  while  as  to  whether 


PREFACE 


IX 


they  understood  it  aright;  and  that  He  prescribed 
the  manner  in  which  He  would  be  honoured  and 
served,  but  still  left  it  open  to  misconception.  If  this 
be  so,  another  mystery  is  added  to  the  many  which 
encompass  us,  viz.,  Why  was  any  revelation  made  at 
all  ?  And  such  a  supposition  involves  us  in  the  further 
conclusion,  among  others,  that  the  work  of  Jesus 
Christ  for  man  began  and  ended  with  the  Redemption, 
that  He  brought  no  message  to  the  human  race — or 
none  that  was  essential — ^and  that  man's  subsequent 
service  of  God  was  not  to  be  concerned  with  the  act 
of  Redemption,  further  than  the  preservation  of  the 
memory  thereof  as  a  more  or  less  vague  historical  fact. 

Hence  the  Christian  belief,  eminently  simple  and 
reasonable,  has  always  been  that  Jesus  Christ  had 
a  definite  message  for  mankind — His  own  contem- 
poraries and  the  rest  of  the  human  race  to  the  end 
of  times — and  that  He  must  have  made  adequate 
provision  for  the  right  understanding  and  entire 
transmission  of  this  message.  It  remains  for  con- 
sideration how  this  was  to  be  secured. 

It  was  in  fact  secured  by  the  establishment  of  a 
single,  organised,  visible  community,  charged  with  the 
custody  and  transmission  of  Christ's  message  to  the 
human  race.  This  community  was  single  because 
all  the  members  were  to  agree  in  one  faith,  practise 
the  same  method  of  worship — sacrifice — and  avail 
themselves  of  the  same  means  of  sanctification — the 
sacraments;  while  they  were  all  to  be  united  under 
one  head  in  whom  resided  the  supreme  authority. 
This  unity  under  one  head  implied  organisation, 
which  is  the  distribution  of  functions  among  the  mem- 
bers of  a  composite  body  by  the  supreme  authority 
thereof;  for  organisation  was  necessitated  by  the 
fact  that  the  community  was  to  extend  over  the 
whole  world.  This  community  was  also  to  be  visible, 
i.e.,  the  fact  of  the  members  being  associated  was 
visible,  in  that  the  bond  of  union  among  them  was  of 


X  PREFACE 

its  own  nature  cognoscible  by  the  senses,  and  of  such 
masrnitude  as  to  attract  attention  to  itself. 

Furthermore,  this  one  head  was  protected  for  all 
time  against  errors  in  the  discharge  of  his  office  as 
Teacher  and  Pastor  of  all  Christians,  in  that  he  was 
to  receive  special  divine  guidance. 

The  mere  fact  of  a  claim  to  such  a  prerogative  by  a 
single  individual  would  possess  a  special  significance  of 
its  own ;  but  the  additional  fact  of  the  spectacle  of  an 
ever-increasing  number  of  individuals,  whose  origin, 
aspirations,  and  opinions  on  every  other  subject,  were 
so  multitudinous  and  varied,  being  prepared  to  acknow- 
ledge it,  would  afford  a  testimony  to  the  co-operation 
of  some  great  principle  in  their  hearts,  to  account  for 
which  human  explanations  of  mere  ''organisation"  or 
"discipline"  would  be  wholly  insufficient.  For,  the 
obvious  answer  to  such  explanations  would  be: — 
Organise  in  the  same  manner,  exercise  the  same 
discipline,  and  secure  the  same  result. 

We  have  next  to  consider  that  it  was  not  the  souls 
of  those  of  the  first  century  only  for  whom  Christ  died. 
Those  who  lived  in  succeeding  ages  were  of  equal  value 
in  the  sight  of  God,  and  they  would  need  instruction 
and  direction  if  they  were  to  attain  the  only  end  for 
which  they  had  been  created.  The  first  Christians 
were  but  mortal,  and  they  having  passed  to  their 
reward,  their  functions  must  devolve  upon  others,  if 
the  Christian  message  of  salvation  was  to  be  delivered 
— a  necessity  conterminous  only  with  Time  itself. 

It  follows,  then,  that — unless  God  has  ceased  to 
care  for  His  creatures — this  message  should  still  be 
in  process  of  delivery,  and  with  the  same  authority  and 
exactitude  as  at  the  commencement.  In  other  words, 
that  those  early  Christians  the  witness-bearers,  and 
the  living  Authority  their  head,  must  have  successors 
on  earth  to-day.  The  existing  Christians  must  be  able 
to  point  to  an  existing  Authority  as  their  guide  and 
their  security;   and  the   Authority  must  be  able   to 


PREFACE  xi 

demonstrate  his  functional  descent  from  the  original 
fount  of  all  spiritual  authority,  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord. 
Sundry  conclusions  may  be  drawn  from  the  above : — 

(i.)  It  was  to  be  expected  that,  since  the  Christian 
dispensation  amplified  and  perfected  the  Mosaic;  and 
not  only  exacted  a  higher  standard  of  morality  from 
mankind,  but  also  elevated  those  previously  classed  as 
"Gentiles"  to  the  status  of  "Chosen  People,"  it  would 
meet  with  unbounded  opposition  from  those  interested 
in  maintaining  the  existing  order  of  affairs.  Also  that 
among  temporal  rulers  would  be  found  some  who — 
considering  their  sovereignty  menaced,  or  influenced 
by  other  motives — ^would  refuse  to  permit  the  message 
to  be  promulgated  within  their  jurisdiction.  Further, 
that  sinners  of  every  sort,  unwilling  to  accept  it  them- 
selves, would  oppose  its  acceptance  by  others.  If 
human  restrictions  were  to  be  respected  in  this  matter, 
it  is  plain  that  it  would  become  possible  for  God's 
commands  to  be  over-ridden  by  those  of  man.  The 
messengers,  consequently,  were  still  to  "go  and 
teach,"  but  be  prepared  for  opposition,  danger — 
perhaps  death.  They  were  to  go,  and  take  the  conse- 
quences of  going,  while  the  result  of  their  efforts,  and 
the  eventual  reckoning  with  those  who  hindered  them 
were  to  remain  in  the  hands  of  Him  who  sent  them. 

(ii.)  In  spiritual  matters  there  was  to  be  no  arbitrary 
barrier  between  nations.  It  was  the  Church  of  Christ, 
the  Universal  Church,  that  was  to  be  established,  not 
the  Church  of  this,  that,  or  the  other  country. 

(iii.)  The  methods — or  some  of  them — of  the 
messengers  might  not  command  general  approval; 
just  as  in  our  own  day,  the  tolerance  of  "caste"  in 
India;  and  the  acceptance  of  "official  rank"  in  China, 
by  Catholic  missionaries,  and  so  on,  might  be  open  to 
question.  In  such  a  case  the  hearers  had  to  distinguish 
between  the  revelation  conveyed  as  from  Almighty 
God,  and  methods  of  promulgation  of  obviously  human 
origin.    These  last  from  the  fact  of  their  usually  being 


xii  PREFACE 

local,  and  therefore  easily  traceable  to  their  source, 
would  proclaim  themselves  to  be  no  part  of  the 
revelation,  the  integrity  of  which  was  in  no  way 
affected  thereby. 

Note. — While  this  was  being  written,  the  "official 
rank"  of  missionaries  in  China  has  been  withdrawn  by 
Imperial  Decree,  thus  affording  an  excellent  illustration 
of  the  principle. 

(iv.)  Some  among  the  messengers  might  not  prove 
worthy  of  their  high  vocation,  and  might  even  give 
scandal  by  their  conduct. 

That  would  merely  show  that  they  were  human, 
not  that  their  message  was  not  divine.  Inerrancy  was 
attached  to  the  message,  not  to  the  bearers  of  it  in 
their  general  conduct.  As  long  as  God  wills  the 
evangelisation  of  the  world  by  frail  creatures,  all  the 
workers  must  needs  be  imperfect,  and  some  more  so 
than  others. 

But,  should  the  hearers,  taking  offence  at  the 
imperfections  of  the  evangelist,  decide  to  discard  the 
message  he  brought  and  substitute  another,  what 
would  this  be  but  to  supersede  the  divine  revelation 
by  another — excellent  possibly  but  merely  human,  and, 
as  such,  only  a  matter  of  opinion,  and  consequently, 
possessing  no  authority  which  anyone  would  be  bound 
to  respect?  To  take  a  parallel  instance:  the  fact 
that  men  do  not  keep  the  often  good  and  equitable 
laws  they  have  enacted  themselves,  is  not  admitted 
to  make  out  a  case  for  the  abolition  of  all  law — and 
therefore  of  order — but  one  for  the  correction  of  the 
guilty  parties. 

In  practice,  this  deplorable  phase  has  been  present 
from  the  initial  stage  of  Christianity.  The  members  of 
the  original  apostolic  body — chosen  by  Jesus  Christ 
Himself,  trained  by  Him,  and  fortified  by  His 
example  for  three  years — on  several  occasions  gave 
great  cause  to  the  enemy  to  blaspheme.  One  betrayed 
his  Master,  the  chief  of  them  denied  Him  thrice,  the 


PBEFACE  xiii 

remainder— one   only  excepted — "forsook    Him   and 
fled." 

(v.)  And  finaUy.  If,  as  has  been  claimed,  the 
Christian  message  of  salvation  is  still  promulgated 
throughout  the  world,  and  with  the  same  authority 
and  exactitude  in  the  twentieth  century  as  in  the  first, 
— or  to  put  it  concretely:  if  Almighty  God  has 
appointed  any  Authority  competent  to  manifest  to 
man  ''what  is  truth";  and  that  Authority  is  still  in 
being — the  world  at  large  has  the  right  to  demand 
some  proof  before  admitting  the  claim  of  any  individual 
or  individuals  to  the  office.  And  the  very  least  that 
the  world  can  demand  is  that  the  Authority  himself, 
and  his  agents,  the  subordinate  bearers  of  the 
Christian  message,  shall  deliver  that  message  in 
identical  terms,  in  every  land,  and  under  all  circum- 
stances. 

Anything  less  than  this — any  consideration  of 
"what  modern  opinion  will  tolerate";  or  the  "in- 
advisability  of  promulgating"  this  or  that  doctrine, 
here  or  elsewhere;  any  "surrender  of  much  that  we 
hold  dear"  in  order  "to  secure  a  tolerable  degree  of 
unity";  any  tampering  with  the  revelation  vouch- 
safed to  man  by  his  Maker,  in  short — will  convict 
the  claimants  to  the  office  of  custodians  and  teachers 
of  divine  Truth,  out  of  their  own  mouths,  at  one  and 
the  same  time,  of  the  self-imposed  nature  of  their 
conmiission  to  teach,  and  the  erroneous  character  of 
the  doctrine  of  which  they  are  the  exponents. 

There  are,  therefore,  three  conditions  which  must 
be  satisfied  by  any  Christian  community  if  it  would 
establish  its  position  as  a  duly  authorised  teacher  of 
divine  Truth,  viz..  Apostolic  Succession,  Infallibility, 
and  consequently  Unity  of  doctrine.  Without  the  first 
the  second  cannot  exist,  and  the  absence  of  the  third 
will  denote  the  non-existence  of  the  other  two — ^this 
because  contradictory  doctrines  cannot  be  the  logical 
development   of   one   great   principle.      These    three 


xiv  PREFACE 

conditions  depending  upon  one  another,  when  found 
in  combination,  must  form  the  credentials  of  the 
Christian  Church  on  earth,  and  of  Her  agents  the 
Christian  missionaries. 

We  can  now  repeat  our  original  question,  viz.,  what 
is  it  that  we  are  endeavouring  to  teach  those  whom  we 
caU  ''heathen,"  and  what  authority  we  have  for  doing 
so?  And  the  answer  must  be  that  the  Christian 
missionaries  profess  to  be  conveying  to  the  non- 
Christian  world  a  revelation  from  the  God  of  Truth, 
concerning  Himself,  His  doctrine,  and  the  practice 
thereof. 

In  regard  to  authority,  the  Roman  Catholic 
missionary  can,  through  a  long  line  of  Chief  Pastors, 
point  to  the  day  and  hour  when  he  received  the 
message  of  salvation  from  Jesus  Christ  Himself,  the 
command  to  transmit  it  to  the  world,  and  the  assurance 
of  the  abiding  presence  of  his  Master  as  a  security 
against  error.  In  support  of  this  last  he  can  further 
point  to  his  own  complete  unity  in  faith  and  practice 
with  every  other  Catholic  throughout  the  world,  and 
with  the  Holy  See,  the  immediate  source  of  his 
authority. 

It  is  impossible  to  lay  too  much  stress  on  the 
testimony  afforded  by  unity  arising  out  of  submission 
to  one  living  Authority.  The  experience  of  the  last 
three  hundred  years  has  abundantly  proved  that  in 
matters  in  which  political  interests,  temporal  advantage, 
or  public  tranquillity  are  not  concerned,  unity  of  opinion 
and  practice,  even  between  those  of  the  same  nation, 
is  well-nigh  unattainable.  Consequently  the  unity  oif 
so  vast  a  body  of  the  human  race,  drawn  from  every 
colour,  language,  and  nation  under  heaven,  not  only 
with  regard  to  the  most  abstruse  questions  which  can 
exercise  the  intellect  of  man — many  of  which,  moreover, 
being  incapable  of  scientific  demonstration,  must  rest 
on  faith  alone — but  also  in  voluntary  submission  of 
intellect  and  will  to  the  guidance  of  one  person — usually 


PREFACE  XV 

a  feeble  old  man,  and  always  devoid  of  material 
resources  wherewith  to  enforce  his  behests — cannot  be 
explained  or  accounted  for  by  merely  natural  means. 
The  full  significance  of  this  fact  is  becominfif  daily  more 
clear  at  the  present  time,  in  view  of  the  ever-increasing 
difficulties  experienced  by  ecclesiastical  authorities 
outside  the  Catholic  Church  in  obtaining  any  sort  of 
recognition,  as  powers  that  must  be  reckoned  with, 
from  without,  and  any  degree  of  obedience  from  within. 
Wherefore,  the  true  inference  to  be  drawn  from  the 
unity  of  the  Catholic  Church  is  that  the  same  God 
Who  established  Her  authority  still  lends  His  aid  by 
inclining  the  ''  unruly  wills  and  affections  of  sinful  men  " 
to  submit  to  it 

The  non- Catholic  missionary  has  to  trace  his 
connection  between  earth  and  heaven  through  the 
Catholic  Church,  and  In  so  doing  point  to  the  day 
when  he  separated  from  Her.  And — though  the  piety 
and  zeal  of  such  missionaries  is  unquestionable — ^as  if 
to  convince  the  heathen  efifectuaUy  that  their  teaching 
is  merely  human  and  fallible,  conflicting  opinion,  un- 
restrained by  authority,  has  divided  and  sub-divided 
them  into  numberless  sects  which  can  only  introduce 
into  heathen  lands  spiritual  confusion,  and  thus  pave 
the  way  to  that  profound  religious  scepticism  which 
uncertainty,  dissension,  and  the  untrammelled  vagaries 
of  human  speculation  have  produced  among  so  many 
of  their  own  countrymen. 

Bible  Christianity 

It  is  often  urged  that  the  Bible  is  the  sole  rule  of 
faith,  that  it  contains  all  things  necessary  for  the 
salvation  of  mankind,  and  that  as  it  also  contains  the 
divine  command  to  ''go  and  teach  all  nations,*'  there 
is  no  need  of  any  extraneous  authority. 

But  before  we  open  our  Bible,  we  are  confronted 
with  sundry  difficulties : — By  whom  was  it  written  ? 
How  came  the  Christian  world  to  possess  it  ?    Above 


xvi  PREFACE 

all,  what  guarantee  is  there  for  the  correctness  of  the 
assertion  that  it  is  what  it  is  represented  to  be — the 
Word  of  God? 

As  r^ards  the  New  Testament  with  which  Christi- 
anity is  more  immediately  concerned,  the  answer  is  that 
it  was  written  by  certain  early  Christians,  witnesses 
for  the  most  part,  of  that  whereunto  they  testify ;  that 
its  various  sections  were  collected,  and  copies  thereof 
multiplied,  as  far  as  means  permitted,  by  the  Catholic 
Church;  and  that  as  the  first  Apostles  were  the 
officially  appointed  witnesses  to  what  is  related  and 
taught  therein,  so  their  successors  in  the  Catholic 
Church  to-day  are  the  official  custodians  of  the  Holy 
Book.  The  Catholic  Church  is,  consequently,  the 
only  authority  competent  to  guarantee  the  authenticity 
of  the  Bible,  which  is  in  fact  the  history  of  Her  own 
origin. 

If  then,  the  inspiration  of  the  sacred  Scriptures  as 
the  Word  of  God  be  asserted  as  an  assured  fact,  it  can 
only  be  in  virtue  of  the  infallible  authority  of  the 
Catholic  Church.  Thus  the  various  Protestant  bodies 
are  found  practically  acknowledging  that  authority  by 
accepting  Her  guarantee  for  the  Bible,  and  denying  it 
when  She  would  explain  its  contents. 

It  should  be  added  that,  with  all  Her  reverence  for 
the  Bible,  as  one  of  Her  greatest  treasures,  the  Catholic 
Church  is  in  no  way  dependent  on  it.  The  Holy  Book 
came  from  Her,  not  She  from  It.  She  existed  as  an 
organised  body  before  a  word  of  the  New  Testament 
was  written,  and  several  centuries  before  the  Canon  of 
Holy  Scripture  was  fixed. 

Now,  had  Jesus  Christ  desired  the  evangelisation  of 
the  world  by  means  of  the  Bible,  it  is  evident  that — 
wishing,  as  He  did,  the  matter  to  be  taken  in  hand 
forthwith — He  would  have  provided  the  means  necessary 
for  the  multiplication  of  the  Book,  and  also  have 
prepared  mankind — or  provided  the  machinery  for  so 
doing — to  be  in  a  position  to  use  it  when  they  received 


PREFACE  xvii 

it  Whereas  for  about  fifteen  hundred  years  copies 
had  to  be  produced  by  hand  —  a  process  mainly 
accomplished  in  those  mediaeval  monasteries  on  which 
so  much  indiscriminate  abuse  has  been  heaped.  This 
necessarily  costly  method  must  have  limited  the 
possession  of  a  Bible  to  the  rich.  In  the  then- 
existing  state  of  education  an  even  lesser  number 
could  have  read  it,  given  they  possessed  one.  More 
than  all,  the  Bible,  being  but  a  book,  could  not 
explain  itself  in  cases  of  misunderstanding.  That  very 
considerable  misunderstanding  is  possible  needs  no 
demonstration  in  an  age  when  nearly  every  Article  of 
the  Christian  Faith  is  alternately  attacked,  defended, 
affirmed  or  denied,  all  parties  to  the  contention  loudly 
claiming  Scriptural  authority  for  their  views. 

Christ  our  Lord,  however,  had  prescribed  the 
method :  ''  Go  ye  and  teach  all  nations  "  had  been  His 
command  How  literally  the  Apostles  understood  Him 
is  evident,  for — unprovided  with  books  or  tracts — they 
went  and  taught.  The  Catholic  missionaries,  their 
successors,  of  every  age  down  to  to-day,  have  pursued 
the  same  course. 

Thus  far  we  have  regarded  the  Bible  from  outside, 
but  when  we  investigate  its  contents  we  find  that,  if  one 
fact  is  more  patent  than  another,  it  is  the  constitution  of 
a  living,  teaching  body,  having  the  same  authority  as  its 
divine  Founder,  accredited  to  the  world  at  large,  to 
endure  for  all  time,  and  presided  over  by  an  infallible 
head.    We  may  summarise  our  examination  thus : — 

Jesus  Christ  affirms  all  power  to  be  given  to  Him  in 
heaven  and  earth  (Matt,  xxviii.  i8),  and  sends  His 
disciples  as  He  had  been  sent  (John  xx.  21),  with 
official  appointment  as  witnesses  (Luke  xxiv.  48)  to 
preach  the  Gospel  throughout  the  world  (Mark  xvi.  15), 
and  inculcate  observance  of  all  He  had  commanded 
(Matt,  xxviii.  20),  which  was  to  be  brought  to  their  minds 
by  the  Holy  Ghost  (John  xiv.  26)..  Those  who  should 
despise  them  would  be  held  to  despise  Him  (Luke  x» 

b 


zx  PREFACE 

The  foregoing  being  an  illustration  of  the  Continuity 
referred  to ;  we  find  that  St  Augustine  was  sent  by  one 
Pope  to  evangelise  the  Anglo-Saxons,  and  continuous 
with  him  is  John  Eliot,  a  missionary  to  British  America 
who  denied  the  authority  of  the  Pope  of  his  day ;  St 
Francis  Xavier,  who  promulgated  the  Catholic  religion 
in  India,  had  for  a  successor  Dr  Carey,  who  made  it 
his  life's  work  to  undo  his  teaching ;  while  Dr  Judson 
was  not  even  continuous  with  himself,  as  he  changed 
his  denominational  relations  on  his  way  to  the  heathen, 
being  "convinced  that  the  New  Testament  furnished 
no  authority  for  infant  baptism."^  It  would  seem, 
therefore,  that  Continuity  of  this  description  does  not 
demand  further  examination. 

And  now,  by  way  of  complete  answer  to  the  question 
at  the  beginning,  "  By  what  authority  dost  thou  these 
things?  And  who  hath  given  thee  this  authority?*' 
we  may  put  in  a  sentence  the  reply  the  Roman  Catholic 
missionary  must  always  give : — **  By  the  authority  of 
the  Catholic  Church,  given  to  Her  by  Christ  our  Lord." 
And  the  claims  of  the  Catholic  Church  may  be  briefly 
stated  as  follows : — 

1.  That  to  Her — ^and  to  Her  alone — in  the  persons 
of  the  first  Apostles,  was  the  divine  command  addressed, 
"  Go,  teach  all  nations." 

2.  That  the  Catholic  Bishops  of  to-day  are  the 
successors  of  those  Apostles ;  the  Pope,  the  Chief 
Pastor  of  them  all,  is  the  functional  descendant  of  St 
Peter;  and  to  Him  is  due  the  submission  and  obedi- 
ence, in  spiritual  matters,  of  all  people  on  earth,  as  to 
the  Authority  delegated  by  Jesus  Christ  to  teach  them 
the  way  of  salvation. 

3.  That  She  does  not  depend,  in  any  degree,  upon 
the  Bible  for  authority  or  doctrine;  but  that,  on  the 
contrary,  the  Bible  depends  upon  Her  for  guarantee 
and  Interpretation. 

*  Memoirs  of  Rev,  Adoniram  Judson^  D,D,^  Francis  Wayland,  voL  i., 
P«95- 


PREFACE  xxi 

4.  That  She  is  not  a  sect,  uc^  one  Church  amonsr 
many  equally  good;  nor  will  She  tolerate  such  within 
Her  Communion.  Further,  that  union  with  other 
religrious  bodies  in  any  other  manner  than  their  com- 
plete submission  to  Her  teachinsr  in  matters  of  Faith 
and  Morals  is  impossible. 

5.  That,  since  all  Christian  nations  were  converted, 
in  the  first  instance,  by  agents  authorised  by  Her,  the 
world  is  beholden  to  Her  for  such  measure  of  Christianity 
as  it  now  possesses. 

6.  And  that,  consequently,  She,  and  She  alone,  is 
the  duly  accredited  herald  of  the  Gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ,  not  only  to  the  heathen,  but  also  to  the 
Christian  world  outside  Her  fold. 


CONTENTS 

PAOI 

Introduction     ......  xxv 

PART  I 
The  Chaos  of  Creeds 


I.  Not  Concentration  but  Diffusion  .         •          .  i 

II.  From  Confucius  to  Confusion          ...  13 

III.  "Unum  in  Christo"      .....  27 

IV.  The  Translation  of  Holy  Scriptxtre         •  •  42 
V.  The  Circulation  of  Christian  Literature          .  55 

VI.  ^Thinkest  thou  that  thou  Understandbst  what 

THOU  READEST?''  .  .  •  •  •         68 

VI  I.    The  Bible  and  the  Chinese   ....       89 
VI 1 1.    Marriage  and  the  Missionary  .108 

PART  II 
China  and  the  Christian  Nations 

I.  The  Education  of  China         .  •  •  .133 

II.  China:  The  Land  OF  Promise.  .  .  •154 

III.  The  Influence  and  Example  of  the  European  .     179 

IV.  The  Open  Door  (Christian  Version)  .  •     206 
V.    "Experientia  Docet"    .                    .          .  .224 

VI.    A  Chinese  Opinion  on  the  Christian  Religion  •     240 
VII.    China  and  Christian  Missions  .         •249 


XXIV 


CONTENTS 


PART  III 


Catholic  Missions 


I.  The  Missionary  at  Work 

11.  Thb  Cathouc  Missionary  at  Home  . 

III.  Catholic  Missions  from  another  Point  of  View 

IV.  Orphanages  .  •         •  .  . 
V.  The  Litigation  Question 

VI.  Education  and  SaENCE— Nuns 

vn.  Various  Matters.    Conclusion    .     . 


PAOl 
318 

357 
382 
394 


A. 


B. 


C. 


D. 


E. 


Appendix 

Statistics  of  Catholic  Missions  in  China  by 
Vicariates  .......     417 

Summary  of  Personnel  of  Catholic  Missions  in 
THE  Far  East      .  .  .  .  .  •     449 

Number  of  Chinese  Catholics  in  each  Proyincb 
of  the  Empire,  and  in  Tibet  .  .  .450 

Number  of  Chinese  Catholics  in  each  Mission, 
Increase  in  a  year,  and  Number  of  Catechumens. 
The  Same  in  Korea  and  Japan         .  .  -450 

General  Summary  of  Catholic  Missions  in  China, 

1907 453 

Statistics  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China,  1905  .     454 


Bibliography— Authorities  on  China  and  Missions         .     457 
Index 465 


INTRODUCTION 

The  object  of  the  foUowing  pasres  is  to  give  some 
account  of  the  Missionary  work  of  the  Catholic  Church 
in  China  from  about  i860  to  1907  as  seen  by  observers 
both  clerical  and  lay — for  the  most  part  non-Catholic — 
as  nearly  as  possible  in  their  own  words,  and  with  as 
little  comment  as  possible. 

The  work  itself  was  suggested  by  the  fact  that,  in 
this  country,  very  little  is  known  on  the  subject,  even 
among  Catholics  themselves,  except  that  China  is 
included  in  the  general  scheme  of  missionary  operations 
of  the  Church. 

The  peculiar  method — verbatim  quotation  of  un- 
official (/.^.,  non-ecclesiastical)  writers — has  been  em- 
ployed because  there  is  very  little  official  information 
immediately  available  in  England.  Catholic  mission- 
aries do  not  as  a  rule  publish  books  on  their  work, 
possibly  because  they  have  other  matters  demanding 
their  more  immediate  attention.  Principally,  however, 
because  had  such  Catholic  material  as  does  exist  been 
utilised,  it  might  have  been  suspect  to  many  a  non- 
Catholic  reader  who  often,  and  no  doubt  sincerely, 
believes  that  Roman  Catholics  are  taught  to  represent 
their  Church  and  Her  doings  in  any  form  that  is  likely  to 
attract,  quite  irrespective  of  fact.  This  method  has  only 
been  departed  from  in  the  case  of  the  Table  of  Results 
at  the  end  of  the  book.  For  obvious  reasons  these 
statistics  could  not  possibly  be  obtained  elsewhere,  and 
yet  appeared  to  be  essential,  if  it  were  not  to  seem  that 
the  Holy  Catholic  Church  has  poured  forth  labour  and 


xxvi  INTRODUCTION 

sacrificed  lives  in  the  "  Middle  Kingdom  "  in  vain.  The 
information  just  referred  to  has  been  obtained  in  every 
instance  from  China,  and  in  most  cases  has  been 
supplied  for  the  purpose  of  this  book  by  the  condescen- 
sion of  the  Right  Reverend  Vicars- Apostolic  in  charge 
of  the  Missions. 

On  the  other  hand,  during  the  last  forty  years  an 
ever-increasing  number  of  persons,  clerical  and  lay,  have 
traversed  the  country,  not  a  few  of  whom  have  put  on 
paper  at  least  something  of  what  they  saw  of  the 
Catholic  missionary  and  his  doings.  Often  the  refer- 
ence is  of  the  slightest,  but,  in  the  aggregate  it  amounts 
to  a  very  considerable  volume  of  testimony. 

While  it  is  not  uncommon  for  the  casual  traveller 
who  has  thus  placed  his  experiences  on  record  to  be 
somewhat  contemptuously  dismissed  as  "  a  mere  globe- 
trotter," it  must  be  admitted  that,  though  such  an  one 
may  not  have  resided  in  the  country,  he  is  at  least  a 
competent  witness  to  what  he  saw  and  heard  while  he 
was  there.  When  such  individuals  proceed  to  instruct 
the  world  as  to  the  correct  method  of  dealing  with 
Chinese  questions,  then  perhaps,  their  utterances  are  of 
less  value ;  but  the  examination  of  a  very  large  number 
of  works  shows  this  to  be  the  exception  rather  than  the 
rule. 

But  the  evidence  available  is  not  limited  to  the  obiter 
dicta  of  travellers.  Numerous  Protestant  missionaries 
have  published  works  of  more  or  less  value  on  China ; 
while  much  information  is  to  be  found  in  Diplomatic 
Correspondence,  Consular  Reports,  and  newspapers 
issued  in  England  and  China. 

Consequently,  in  these  days  when  the  acquisition  of 
Mining  Rights  is  so  very  much  in  evidence  in  the  Far 
East,  it  appeared  to  be  r^rettable  that  such  a  mine  of 
valuable  material  should  remain  unworked — the  only 
mineral  remaining  perhaps,  for  the  exhumation  of  which 
the  Peking  Administration  has  not  been  ''requested" 
to  grant  a  concession  to  a  European  Syndicate. 


INTRODUCTION  xxvii 

Such  being  the  sources  of  the  present  work,  it  is 
hardly  surprising  that  the  amount  of  information  on  the 
various  points  is  very  unequal,  and  sometimes  very 
measrre.  Especially  will  this  be  found  in  regard  to 
details  of  Catholic  education,  hospitals,  etc.  But  this 
arises  from  the  very  nature  of  those  sources,  i.e.^  non- 
Catholic  works.  From  the  tabulated  statement  at  the 
end  it  is  quite  evident  that  such  good  works  are  under- 
taken, and  on  a  large  scale.  Yet,  though  the  various 
authors  must  have  seen  them  in  operation  very  little 
has  been  said — be  the  reason  what  it  may.  How- 
ever, for  the  reason  given  above,  it  has  been  pre- 
ferred to  leave  the  matter  chiefly  in  the  form  of  cold 
and  unappetising  statistics  at  the  end,  rather  than  to 
fill  the  void  with  accounts  obtained  from  the  Catholic 
missionaries. 

The  object  and  scope  of  the  book  being  thus 
accounted  for,  it  may  be  explained  that  before  giving 
any  information  concerning  the  Catholic  missions  it 
appeared  necessary  to  consider  two  difficulties  which 
militate  not  only  against  the  work  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  but  also  against  the  establishment  of  Chris- 
tianity itself.  The  first  is  a  matter  of  universal  concern 
throughout  the  world,  and  consists  in  the  bewildering 
variety  of  forms  under  which  the  Christian  religion  is 
presented  to  the  heathen  by  the  multiplicity  of  agencies 
employed  in  so  doing.  Concerning  this  division  into 
sects  in  China  we  are  assured  by  the  late  Mr 
Alexander  Michie  :  "  That  it  is  a  great  evil  can  hardly 
be  doubted.  Whenever  Chinese  converts  obtain  a 
hearing  on  the  subject  they  speak  with  no  ambiguity  of 
the  immense  loss  of  force  which  Christianity  sustains 
through  these  divisions ; "  ^  and  not  unnaturally,  since, 
according  to  the  same  gentleman : — "  Excepting  at  the 
seaports,  and  in  the  case  of  the  disciplined  and  regi- 
mented Catholics,  the  missionaries  who  are  spread  over 
China  do  pretty  much  what  they  individually  like,  and 
*  Missionaries  in  Ckina^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  52. 


xxviii  INTRODUCTION 

give   such    accounts   of    their    work    as   they   think 
sufficient."^ 

On  the  general  question,  Professor  Gustav  Warneck 
remarks : — "  Gladdening,  as,  on  the  one  hand,  is  the 
great  number  of  this  missionary  host  .  .  on  the  other 
hand,  it  signifies  an  amount  of  division  which  works 
alike  to  confusion  and  weakness.  It  is  a  fatal  watch- 
word which,  since  a  short  time  ago  has  been  given 
forth,  especially  in  America,  by  rhetorical  enthusiasts, 
'Not  concentration  but  difiusion,'  for  it  leads  to  a 
kind  oi  franC'tireur  mission  work.  .  .  .  Towards  this 
multiplication  of  missionary  organisations,  manifold 
causes  have  contributed,  besides  the  strengthening  of 
the  sense  of  missionary  duty — confessional  peculiarities, 
denominational  loyalty,  new  theological  tendencies  and 
ecclesiastical  formations,  differences  as  to  missionary 
methods,  personal  eagerness  to  found  missions,  occur- 
rences in  colonial  politics,  etc"  Further  we  learn  on 
the  same  authority  that  ''  women's  missionary  societies 
have  in  the  latter  half  of  our  century  been  formed  in 
ever  increasing  number."  Hence  the  Professor  con- 
cludes that:  ''It  may  be  regretted  that  there  is  not  a 
greater  unity  in  the  organisation  of  evangelical  mis- 
sionary work,  such  as  in  the  Romish.  The  great 
variety  of  form  characterising  the  Protestant  Church, 
and  the  tendency  to  freedom  characterising  Protestant- 
ism assert  themselves  even  in  its  missions.  The  dark 
sides  are  undeniable :  friction  between  the  missionaries 
of  various  denominations,  stumbling-blocks  to  the 
heathen,  and  difficulties  in  the  subsequent  formation  of 
native  national  Christian  Churches.  Albeit  in  the 
diversity  there  is  also  considerable  gain.  For  not  only 
has  the  profusion  of  missionary  societies  at  home 
multiplied  interest  in  missions,  but  also  in  this  way  a 
great  variety  of  individual,  national,  and  denominational 
gifts  and  powers  has  come  to  be  employed  in  the  mis- 
sion   field.      And    notwithstanding    much    unseemly 

^  Afissumaries  in  China^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  52. 


INTRODUCTION  xxix 

rivalry,  the  common  missionary  work  has  fostered  the 
'ecumenical,'  conception  within  Protestantism,  as  ^.£:, 
the  many  missionary  conferences  attest  .  .  .  Instead 
of  foundinsT  new  missionary  societies,  the  endeavour 
should  much  rather  be  towards  the  union  of  missionary 
societies.  .  .  We  have  diffusion  more  than  enough.  If 
it  is  carried  still  further  upon  principle,  it  must  ulti- 
mately lead  to  the  breaking  upofevansrelical  missions 
into  atoms."  ^ 

The  second  difficulty  appears  in  the  action  of  the 
European  nations  in  regard  to  China.  Authorities 
agree  that  the  Chinese  are  tolerant  of  religion  as  such. 
This  view  gains  support  from  the  fact  that,  previous  to 
the  legal  admission  of  foreigners  into  the  interior  of  the 
country  by  treaty,  the  Catholic  missionaries  resided 
there  secretly  yet  safely — which  they  could  only  have 
done  by  the  connivance  of  those  in  whose  midst  they 
dwelt — with  only  occasional  intervals  of  official  per- 
secution. 

It  would  seem,  however,  that  during  the  last  forty 
years  or  so,  missionaries  have  been  the  objects  of  much 
unpopularity.  It  is  not  a  little  remarkable  too,  that  the 
rise  and  progress  of  this  unfriendly  spirit  should  have 
coincided  with  the  inception  and  development  of  that 
phase  of  European  activity  known  as  the  ''opening-up 
of  China." 

This  feeling  is  ascribed  by  one  writer  to  the  mis- 
understanding, or  mismanagement  in  the  delivery,  of 
their  message,  on  the  part  of  the  missionaries.  But 
authorities  more  generally  seem  to  concur  in  the  opinion 
that  the  objection  to  Christianity — ^and  therefore  to  its 
exponents,  the  missionaries — ^is,  or  was,  not  so  much 
on  account  of  itself  as  because  it  is  foreign.  Some, 
indeed,  attempt  to  limit  the  antagonism  to  the  Catholic 
missionaries  alone;  and  ascribe  it  to  the  assumption 
by  France  of  the  Protectorate  of  Catholic  missions. 

*  Outline   of  a  History  of  Protestant  Missions^    1901,    Professor 
Gostav  Wameck,  pp.  85-6,  105, 143-4. 


XXX  INTRODUCTION 

While  it  may  doubtless  be  true  that  this  and  other 
causes  affecting  the  Catholic  missions  may  have  played 
their  part,  the  contention  that  the  missionaries  of  the 
Church  of  Rome  are  alone  of  all  Europeans  regarded 
with  aversion  by  the  Chinese  is  not  borne  out  by  facts. 
These  go  to  show  that  in  the  various  outbreaks  which 
have  unhappily  taken  place,  Protestant  missionaries 
and  other  foreigners — including  innocent  children — 
have  been  equally  the  objects  of  attack,  ^.£;,  the  Anti- 
foreign  Riots  of  1 89 1,  and  the  Siege  of  the  Legations 
in  Peking  in  1900. 

Wherefore  the  explanation  must  be  sought  in  a  wider 
sphere  than  that  of  missionary  operations  of  any  sort 
And  it  would  seem  to  be  found  in  the  very  remarkable 
experiences  of  the  Chinese  at  the  hands  of  the  European 
nations.  These  do  not  seem  to  have  produced  in  the 
Chinese  mind  a  very  favourable  impression  of  that 
Christianity  which  those  Western  nations  profess,  and 
by  the  principles  of  which  they  loudly  proclaim— or 
some  of  them — themselves  to  be  guided.  Nor  is  it 
alone  on  the  Chinese  in  his  native  land  that  this  un- 
favourable impression  has  been  made.  Among  the 
higher  classes  instances  are  not  unknown  of  those 
educated  in  Europe  who  have  returned  home  more 
hostile  than  ever  to  the  introduction  of  the  Western 
religions — any  of  them — into  the  Flowery  Land. 
The  lower  orders  as  well  have  had  their  lesson  in 
practical  Christianity  abroad.  The  Chinese  labourer 
or  small  tradesman  has  in  most  cases  been  returned 
without  thanks  by  every  country  where  he  had  ventured 
to  set  his  foot.  From  a  political  and  economical  stand- 
point such  inhospitality  may  possibly  be  capable  of 
defence,  but  from  that  of  justice  the  Celestial  may 
perhaps  be  excused  when  he  fails  to  receive  the 
European  as  a  man  and  a  brother,  who  in  the  West 
received  him  as  the  **  Heathen  Chinee  " — ^and  made  haste 
to  eject  him. 

On  all  these  accounts,  therefore,  the  relations  between 


INTRODUCTION 

Europe  and  China,  far  from  forming  a  mere  "  regrettable 
incident"  in  the  annals  of  Christian  missions,  assume 
a  special  importance  of  their  own,  and  require  considera- 
tion at  some  length. 

A  few  general  asseverations  concerning  the  Catholic 
Church  in  China  can  best  be  dealt  with  here. 

I.  That  the  Catholic  Church  in  China  is  French. 

It  is  true  that  very  many  of  the  Catholic  missionaries 

^e  of  that  nationality ;  but  they  are  in  China  not  as 

Frenchmen  but  as  sons  of  the  Church  Universal,  as 

they  would  be  the  first  to  admit.     It  is  one  of  the 

glories  of  the  French  nation  that  hardly  any  instance 

of  missions  to  the  heathen  in  any  age  or  clime  can 

be  quoted  in  which  France  has  not  been  abundantly 

represented;   and   one  which,  it   may  confidently  be 

hoped,   will  bring  the  divine  blessing  on  her  despite 

the  present  religious  perversity  of  her  rulers.    There  is 

no  heathen  country  the  soil  of  which  is  not  dyed  with 

French  blood,  and  the  Story  of  the  Cross  of  Christ 

throughout  the  world  is  punctuated,  so  to  speak,  by  the 

graves  of  Frenchmen  martyred  for  their  Faith.    Not  a 

few  of  these  Frenchmen,  it  may  be  noted,  are  Belgians, 

Danes,  Germans,  Spaniards,  and  we  know  of  one  case 

at  least  of  an  Englishman,  thus  giving  conclusive  proof 

that  their  work  is  not  merely  national. 

It  does  sound  a  little  curious  that  we  in  England 
should  be  chanting  hymns  of  praise  at  the  shrine  of  an 
Entente  Cordiale  with  the  very  nation  whose  citizen- 
ship we  make  a  matter  of  reproach  in  China.  It  can 
only  be  surmised  that  the  Entente  Cordiale  in  England, 
like  anti-clericalism  in  France,  tiest  pas  un  article 
d* exportation. 

Moreover,  if  England  and  America  are  not  repre- 
sented in  the  Catholic  missions  in  China,  it  is  only 
because  the  Holy  See  has  not  chosen  to  send  English- 
speaking  communities  to  labour  there;  and  this,  in 
turn,  may  be  due  to  the  fact  that  the  countries  referred 
to  have,  in  the  state  of  Catholicity  which  has  prevailed 


xxxii  INTRODUCTION 

since  the  Reformation,  had  quite  enougfh  to  do  in 
providing^  for  the  work  at  home.  From  this  cause,  at 
the  present  day,  many  British  Colonies  and  Depend- 
encies are  entirely  dependent  on  the  apostolic  zeal  of 
other  European  nations,  whose  priests  not  only  thus 
have  to  encounter  the  apathy  of  the  heathen,  but  the 
not-always-veiled  anti-foreign  prejudices  of  the  very 
citizens  to  whose  aid  they  have  come  in  their  endeavours 
to  bring  Western  civilisation  and  education  to  the 
natives.  And,  if  England  and  America  by  voluntary 
severance  from  Catholic  Unity  have  deprived  them- 
selves of  their  proper  share  in  the  apostolic  work  of  the 
Universal  Church,  whose  fault  is  that?  It  has  been 
plausibly  alleged  that,  had  England  remained  constant 
to  the  Faith  which  was  for  so  many  centuries  her  own, 
there  would  not  now  be  a  pagan  altar  in  the  world. 

2.  That  these  French  missionaries — exiled  from 
home  by  their  own  voluntary  act,  never  to  return 
thither — are  still  devoted  to  their  native  land,  and 
introduce  French  customs  into  China. 

This  comes  strangely  from  Englishmen  and  Ameri- 
cans— among  the  latter  of  whom  originated  the  maxim, 
"My  country,  right  or  wrong!" — ^and  both  of  whom 
elevate  patriotism  to  the  rank  of  a  cardinal  virtue.  In 
England,  too,  one  of  the  standard  objections  to  the 
Catholic  Church  is  that  She  is  a  foreign  institution 
ruled  from  a  foreign  country  by  a  foreign  head ; 
conveniently  oblivious  of  the  fact  that  the  Jesus  Christ, 
whom  all  Christians  worship  as  their  Lord  and  Master, 
was  also  a  foreigner  and  lived  and  died  in  a  foreign 
land. 

So  the  Englishman  must  be  an  Englishman  where- 
ever  he  goes,  but  the  Catholic  missionary  must  entirely 
denationalise  himself!  Further,  we  applaud  the  English 
missionary  as  a  pioneer  of  commerce  when  he  introduces 
British  commodities  into  China  ;^  and  when  we  learn 

*  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond,  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
p.  47. 


INTRODUCTION  xxxiii 

that :  "In  my  last  year  at  Chang-sha  the  first  Athletic 
Meeting  on  European  lines,  for  military  and  civil 
students,  was  held  in  presence  of  the  Governor;"^  or 
that  at  Seoul,  in  Korea,  there  is  a  ''Royal  English 
School,  with  a  hundred  students  in  uniform,  regularly 
drilled  by  a  British  sergeant  of  Marines,  and  crazy 
about  football,"  ^  and  so  on,  we  find  all  things  as  they 
should  be;  but  it  is  obviously  insufferable  that  a 
foreigner  should  presume  to  think  that  the  customs 
or  products  of  his  native  land  might  be  desirable 
elsewhere ! 

With  regard  to  England  and  her  missions  the  case 
is,  of  course,  wholly  different,  as  we  learn  on  the 
authority  of  the  late  Bishop  of  Durham.  In  a  sermon 
in  St  Brides  Church,  London  (29th  April  1895),  his 
Lordship  instructed  his  congregation  that: — "This 
perception  of  a  divine  plan  in  the  movements  of  human 
life  brings  home  to  us  a  fact  of  momentous  interest. 
In  this  plan  of  God  we  have  a  definite  place.  .  .  .  Our 
works  are  ready ;  and  what  these  are  can  be  seen  from 
our  position  and  endowments.  For  if  as  Englishmen, 
as  English  Churchmen,  we  consider  our  national 
character,  our  history,  our  necessary  influence,  our 
possessions,  we  cannot  fail  to  acknowledge  that  we 
are  called  as  no  other  people  have  been  called,  to 
missionary  labour."*  And  again,  28th  May  1894,  in 
St  Paul's  Cathedral: — "God  has  set  us  to  be  not 
only  conquerors,  or  pioneers,  or  masters,  or  furnishers 
of  the  materials  of  outward  civilisation,  but,  beyond  all, 
evangelists.  The  call  is  written  in  our  history."* 
Further :  "  The  destiny  of  China,"  says  Rev.  James 
Johnston,   "is  committed   by  a  Higher  Power  as  a 

1  The  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  in  section  written  by  Mr  A.  H. 
Harris,  A.C.C.,  Cbangsha,  p.  188. 

*  Korea  and  Her  Neighbours^  1898,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
voL  ii.,  p.  208. 

'  The  Christian  Aspects  of  Ufe^  1901,  Rt.  Rev.  B.  F.  Westcott, 
D.D.,  D.C.L.,  p.  164.  *  IHiL^  pp.  143-4. 

C 


INTRODUCTION 

sacred  deposit  to  the  keeping  of  Great  Britain — the 
Power  which  first  broke  down  the  wall  of  exclusiveness 
behind  which  the  people  had  lived  for  untold  ages  in 
contented  security  and  comparative  comfort.     I  would 
earnestly   appeal    to   the   consciences   of  my   fellow- 
countrymen  to  deal  justly  with  a  people  whose  future 
is  in  their  hands ;  to  their  heart  that  they  may  act 
generously  towards  a  nation  which  we  have  injured 
while  benefiting  ourselves ;  to  their  imagination  that 
they  may  be  tender  in  their  treatment  of  an  empire  so 
ancient  and  so  venerable,  and  withal  afflicted  with  not 
a  few  of  the  excusable  infirmities   of  age,  but   still 
possessed   of  great   recuperative   power."*     Further- 
more,   Mr    Pierson,    who    thinks    "Gods    ways   are 
strange,  but  they  always  are  'right,'  and  lead  often 
by  a  circuitous  route  to  the  'City  of  Habitation,'"*  lets 
us  know  that  "  He  who  kept  back  the  great  inventions 
of  Reformation  times  until  His  Church  put  on  her  new 
garments  waited   to   unveil   nature's   deeper   secrets, 
which  should  make  all  men  neighbours,  until  the  re- 
formed Church  was  mobilised  as  an  army  of  conquest  !"* 
It  would  be  well  if  the  following  reminder  conveyed 
in  the  generous  language  of  Sir  Ernest  Satow  to  a 
meeting  in  the  Albert  Hall,   London,  were  of  more 
general  acceptance.     "There  are  two  or  three  points 
which,  it  appears  to  me,  should  always  be  borne  in 
mind  by  our  missionaries.    Firstly,  it  ought  not  to  be 
forgotten  that  the  Roman  Catholic  missions  were  the 
first  in  the  field.    We  are  celebrating  the  Centenary  of 
the  landing  of  Robert  Morrison  in  China.    But  French 
Roman  Catholics  landed  on  its  shores  in  1582,  more 
than  three  centuries  ago.    Since  that  day  the  Roman 
Catholics  in  China  have  endured  many  persecutions ; 
many   of  their   missionaries   and   hundreds  of   their 
converts  have  suffered  death  for  the  Faith.     If,  some- 

'  China  and  Its  Future^  1899,  James  Johnston,  pp.  viii-ix. 

'  The  Modem  Missi&nary  Centuryy  1901,  Arthur  T.  Pierson,  p.  186. 

s  IHdy  p.  26. 


INTRODUCTION  xxxv 

times,  they  regard  us  as  later  intruders  on  grround  which 
they  had  made  their  own,  should  we  not  bear  with  them 
patiently?  I  rejoice  to  believe  that,  in  most  parts  of 
China  the  relations  between  Protestant  and  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  are  of  a  friendly  character,  and 
that  disputes  are  comparatively  rare.  In  any  case 
toleration  of  others  seems  to  be  peculiarly  our  duty."^ 

3.  The  Catholic  Church  is  asserted  to  possess  vast 
estates  in  China.  Hence,  converts  are  inferred  to  be 
attracted  by  temporal  advantages  attachinsr  thereto. 

That  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  owns  some 
property  in  China  after  three  centuries'  work  there, 
is  undoubted,  and  only  to  be  expected — thoug^h  what 
the  extent  of  it  may  be  it  is  impossible  to  say.  But  it 
is  sinsrular,  that,  if  She  is  so  bitterly  hated  as  some  of 
her  critics  would  have  us  believe,  these  vast  estates  (the 
precise  whereabouts  of  which  is  nowhere  described) 
should  have  remained  intact — ^miraculously  as  would 
seem — throusrhout  the  various  anti-foreigfn  riots,  and 
still  be  available  as  a  source  of  revenue. 

Equally  sinsrular  does  it  appear,  that,  with  the 
command  of  vast  estates,  the  Catholic  missionaries 
should,  by  universal  consent,  be  described  as  living 
very  hard  lives  on  the  scantiest  of  stipends ;  and  also 
that  most  of  the  forty  Vicars- Apostolic  throughout  the 
Empire  should  be  in  dire  need  of  funds  to  carry  on  the 
work  of  their  missions  at  this  moment — as  several  of 
their  Lordships  have  admitted  to  the  present  writer. 

More  singular  still  is  the  fact — vouched  for  by 
sundry  observers — that  Chinese  converts  are  required 
to  contribute  towards  the  support  of  their  Church. 
Consequently,  if  they  are  converted  by  bribery,  and 
ixactically  have  to  refund  the  amount  when  they 
become  so,  it  does  not  appear  that  their  financial 
condition  is  much  improved  by  the  process. 

Again,  it  is  sometimes  stated  that  Catholic  orphanages 
are  overcrowded,  and  the  hospital  equipments  are  not 
^  The  Tiffus^  ist  Nov.  1907. 


xxxvi  INTRODUCTION 

up  to  modern  European  standards.  This  is  quite 
likely,  and  gfoes  to  contradict  the  sugfgestion  of  un- 
limited resources.  And  unfortunately  the  Catholic 
missionaries  have  not  wealthy  societies  behind  them 
in  Europe  or  America.  This  must  not  be  understood 
in  depreciation  of  the  magnificent  works  of  charity 
undertaken  by  others.  Indeed  the  Catholic  mission- 
aries themselves  have  reaped  the  benefit  of  them  on 
occasions,  e.g.^  a  French  missionary  informed  the 
present  writer  (2Sth  June  1907),  in  writing  of  mission- 
aries, that  ''plusteurs  de  la  Classe  M^dicale  ant  plus 
cPunefoiSy  et  viennent  encore  de  sauver  la  vie  d  qtielques 
uns  de  nos  metlleurs  ouvriers  avec  un  d&uouement  digne 
de  tout  4loge'' 

4.  The  Catholic  missionaries  are  said  to  work  in 
secret  and  by  underhand  means.  Yet  it  is  complained 
that  they  appear  in  the  Law  Courts  to  help  their 
converts,  and  terrorise  the  magistrates ;  while  till  quite 
recently  every  missionary  throughout  the  Empire  held 
official  Chinese  rank  of  some  degree. 

5.  Once  more,  the  Catholic  missionaries  are 
censured  for  courting  popularity  by  over-attention  to 
the  mundane  interests  of  the  converted.  On  the  other 
hand,  there  are  not  wanting  those  who  blame  them  for 
allowing  their  converts  to  **go  along  in  their  old  ruts," 
desiring  only  that  they  be  good  Catholics. 

6.  While  the  Catholic  missionaries  are  said  to  be 
unscrupulous  and  to  put  their  doctrines  in  any  form 
that  is  likely  to  please,  it  is  a  matter  of  reproach  that 
the  Church  proclaims  in  China  (as  elsewhere  through- 
out the  world)  the  doctrine  of  the  **  Real  Presence,"  and 
also  "  introduces  the  Confessional "  there — the  last  not 
exactly  a  matter  to  attract. 

7.  That  conversion  to  Catholicity  is  easy — the 
Catholic  religion  being  idolatrous,  those  joining 
themselves  to  it  "only  exchange  one  idol  for 
another" — but  no  one  seems  able  to  explain  why 
they  do  so. 


INTRODUCTION  xxxvii 

8.  Catholic  converts  are  not  unfrequently  referred 
to  as  "merely  nominal  Christians."  Many  thousands 
of  them — and  those  in  recent  years  —  have  been 
sufficiently  nominal  to  die  for  their  Faith,  sometimes 
after  horrible  tortures.  Protestant  witnesses  attest 
this;  and  the  Catholic  Church — always  ready,  in  the 
eyes  of  those  who  know  Her  not,  to  agree  to  un- 
hallowed compromises — asks  no  more  of  Her  children 
than  willinsr  martyrdom.  Many  others  no  doubt  have 
been  less  satisfactory  in  their  lives,  a  defect  which  they 
share  with  a  few  so-called  Christians  outside  the 
Church — even  some  Europeans  at  the  Treaty  Ports. 

9.  The  Roman  Catholic  Church  in  China  will  unite 
with  none,  share  with  none,  nor  will  She  submit  to  any. 
And  this  is  true,  for  She  was  sent  to  teach  all  nations, 
China  among  the  number. 


PART  I 
THE  CHAOS  OF  CREEDS 


-  *  ,' 


J.  i 


CHAPTER  I 

NOT  CONCENTRATION  BUT  DIFFUSION 

Of  aU  the  countries  whose  conversion  to  Christianity 
has  been  the  object  of  missionary  effort  since  the  year 
i860,  none  has  figured  more  largely  than  China. 
Societies  with  that  end  in  view,  either  inclusively  or 
exclusively,  have  multiplied;  and  private  individuals 
have  devoted  their  lives  and  their  substance  to  her 
spiritual  regeneration  in  constantly  increasing  numbers. 
Money,  even  the  approximate  amount  of  which  will 
never  be  known,  has  been  poured  out  like  water  by 
benevolent  persons  in  Europe  and  America,  to  sustain 
the  missionaries,  and  supply  them  with  material  to 
carry  on  their  operations.  Bibles,  tracts,  books  of 
Christian  instruction,  all  purporting  to  be  in  Chinese, 
have  been  lavished  on  the  people,  and  the  tale  of  their 
pages  must,  by  now,  be  well  into  the  hundreds  of 
millions.  Thus,  for  over  forty  years — to  say  nothing 
of  the  period  antecedent  to  i860 — the  Chinese  have 
been  in-eached  to,  exhorted,  or  otherwise  instructed 
concerning  the  Christian  Faith,  till  it  would  seem 
that  localities  where,  at  least,  the  fame  thereof  has 
not  penetrated,  must  be  difficult  to  find. 

Yet  the  goal  of  so  much  effort,  the  Conversion  of 
China,  seems  as  far  off  as  ever,  and  has  even  been  said 
to  be  impossible  of  attainment 

What  is  to  be  understood  by  this  last  statement? 
Is  it  to  be  supposed  that  Jesus  Christ,  in  giving  the 
command  to  His  Apostles,  for  themsdves  and  their 

A 


2  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

successors: — "Goingf  therefore  teach  ye  all  nations,"^ 
deliberately  assigned  to  them  a  task  which — as  far  as 
China  is  concerned — He  knew  to  be  beyond  their 
power  to  accomplish?  Or,  may  it  not  be,  as  seems 
much  more  probable,  that  the  methods  and  conditions  of 
missionary  labour  have  so  altered,  that  the  Christianis- 
ing of  China  will  be  so  indefinitely  delayed  as  to  amount 
to  an  impossibility,  not  merely  during  our  own  genera- 
tion, but  for  many  of  those  to  come? 

This  view  seems  to  be  sustained  by  even  the 
briefest  and  most  general  comparison  of  the 
** Missionary  Question"  as  it  appeared  in  China  in 
the  year  i860,  and  for  centuries  previous  thereto, 
with  the  same  problem  as  it  presents  itself  to-day. 

In  the  first  case,  the  Cross  of  Christ  was  introduced 
to  the  Chinese,  as  far  as  the  interior  of  the  country  was 
concerned,  by  the  agents  of  one  organisation  only,  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church.  These,  as  befitted  men  who 
asserted  themselves  to  come  in  pursuance  of  a  divine 
precept  to  teach,  were  officially  connected  with  none 
of  the  governments  of  the  West;  from  whom  they 
neither  desired  nor  received  countenance  or  protection. 
Working  in  the  somewhat  fitful  sunshine  of  the 
Imperial  favour  while  it  lasted,  they  were  neverthe- 
less perfectly  prepared  to  face  the  horrors  of  the 
torture-chamber  and  the  execution-ground  when  it 
was  withdrawn.  They  came  to  China — as  indeed 
they  still  go — for  their  lifetime;  and,  adopting  the 
national  costume  and  habits,  they  lived  among  and 
for  their  people,  thus  identifying  themselves  with  them 
as  far  as  was  humanly  possible.  Moreover,  they  had 
the  courage  to  carry  into  effect  their  Master's  Instruc- 
tions to  missionaries,  viz.,  "Do  not  possess  gold,  nor 
silver,  nor  money  in  your  purses,"^  by  living  in 
apostolic  poverty  and  simplicity;  while  their  entire 
devotion  to  their  missionary  labours  was  further 
assisted  by  observance  of  St  Paul's  monition: — "He 

*  Matt,  xxviii.  19.  *  Matt  x.  9. 


NOT  CONCENTRATION  BUT  DIFFUSION  3 

that  is  without  a  wife  is  solicitous  for  the  things  that 
bdonsT  to  the  Lord,  how  he  may  please  God."^ 
Finally,  and  more  important  than  all,  these  Catholic 
missionaries,  without  exception,  taugfht  one  uniform 
doctrine,  administered  the  same  sacraments,  and 
submitted  to  one  Authority;  thus  they  were  a 
perpetual  example  of  that  Unity  they  preached,  and 
which  Christ  desired  when  He  prayed  "that  they  may 
be  one,  as  we  also  are."  * 

The  result  generally  was  thus  described  in  1872  by 
H.M.  Consul  in  Shanghai: — "Their  devotion  is  as 
remarkable  as  their  success  has  been  astonishing,  and 
I  am  one  of  those  who  believe  that  they  have  been  the 
means  of  accomplishing,  and  still  do  accomplish,  a  vast 
amount  of  good.  .  .  .  Wherever  a  Romanist  missionary 
station  is  found  in  a  town  or  village,  it  is  sure  to  be  a 
nucleus  of  a  more  or  less  extended  circle  of  Christian 
families,  in  many  of  which  the  faith  has  been  handed 
down  from  generation  to  generation,  and  I  have  often 
been  struck  by  the  quiet  and  respectability  which  prevails 
among  such  communities,  as  compared  to  the  heathen 
around  them,  as  also  by  the  respect  and  attachment 
shown  by  them  towards  their  'spiritual  fathers,'  as  the 
priests  are  usually  termed."* 

To-day,  the  Chinese  seeker-after-truth  finds  himself 
confronted  by  such  a  multiplicity  of  creeds,  persuasions 
and  organisations  as  might  well  bewilder  a  more  acute 
intelligence  than  his ;  the  operations  of  which  are  "  as 
random  as  the  winds  of  heaven,  simultaneously  let  loose 
from  the  iEolus-bag  of  all  the  Churches  in  Chris- 
tendom."^ The  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  are 
still  at  work,  and  with  the  same  zeal  and  unanimity  as 
of  old;  but  "  the  entrance  of  Protestantism  into  China, 
with  its  inquiring  and  disputatious  spirit,  is  proving  fatal 

*  I  Cor.  vii.  32.  •  John  xviL  11. 

*  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathay^  1872,  W.  H,  Medhurst,  pp.  33-4. 

*  Problems  of  the  Far  East^  1894,  Hon.  G.  N.  Canon,  M.P.,  pp. 
435-6. 


4  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

to  the  ingathering  of  the  harvest  anticipated  by  devout 
Catholics  as  the  result  of  two  centuries  of  toil  in  this 
ungrateful  land.  As  in  the  West,  the  door  once  opened 
to  doubt,  dogmatic  Christianity  seems  doomed."^ 

**On  several  occasions,"  Mr  Di6sy  tells  us,  "when 
I  have  asked  some  highly  educated  Oriental,  trained  in 
Western  knowledge,  and  apparently  in  every  respect 
capable  of  seeing  eye  to  eye  with  Occidentals,  why  he 
did  not  embrace  Christianity,  he  has  answered :  *  WluU 
sort  of  Christianity  ? '  And  there  has  been  an  ironical 
tone  in  the  apparently  innocent  words."* 

It  is  perhaps  hardly  to  be  wondered  at  that  the 
Chinese  should  be  bewildered  by  the  variety  of 
Protestant  Missionary  Bodies  ready  to  undertake 
their  spiritual  instruction.  In  1876  there  were  29 
Societies  working  in  China;  in  1889  there  were  as 
many  as  41  ;  in  1906  these  had  increased  to  82; 
and  "by  counting  in  detached  bodies  of  workers  now 
reckoned  as  'Independent'  the  present  total  would  be 
91.  The  figures  show  that  within  the  last  seventeen 
years  the  number  of  organizations  has  doubled."* 

"  What  are  the  burden  and  bearing  of  our  Lord's 
intercessory  prayer?"  asked  Rev.  William  Muirhead, 
of  the  London  Missionary  Society,  in  1870,  "Unity  in 
the  fullest  sense  of  the  term  .  .  .  what  are  required  by 
the  necessities  of  the  case  in  China  "i  That  all  mission- 
aries there  should  be  as  closely  ranged  as  possible 
against  the  common  foe,  and  employ  all  the  means  in 
their  power  for  the  edification  and  union  of  their 
adherents.  But  what  is  the  condition  of  these  in  this 
respect.^  In  some  places  numbers  of  small  Churches 
have  been  formed,  corresponding  to  the  variety  of 
denominations  represented   by   the  various  missions. 

*  Through  the  Yang-tse  Gorges^  2nd  ed,,  1898,  Archibald  J.  Little, 
F.R.G.S.,  p.  172. 

«  The  New  Far  East,  igoo,  Arthur  Di6sy,  F.R.G.S.,  p.  218. 

^  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China,  1907,  ed.  by  D. 
MacGillivray,  p.  667. 


NOT  CONCENTRATION  BUT  DIFFUSION  6 

The  natives  connected  with  them  are  led  to  entertain 
the  peculiar  prejudices  and  prepossessions  which  mark 
the  foreign  missionaries  as  a  result  of  their  home 
education.  The  style  of  things  current  among  our- 
selves in  matters  that  are  by  no  means  essential  forms 
a  distinction  badge  of  the  converts  lately  reclaimed  from 
heathenism,  and  so  the  exact  counterpart  of  our 
different  sects  and  denominations  at  home  is  in 
danger  of  being  observed  and  manifested  abroad."^ 

In  his  Report  on  the  Trade  of  Chinkiang  for  1884, 
Mr  Consul  Oxenham  remarks  that  "  a  novel  feature  of 
this  place  has  been  the  portentous  increase  of  missionary 
establishments.  The  China  Inland  Mission  has  long 
made  the  place  its  centre,  and  ten  or  twelve  young 
persons,  male  and  female,  have  lately  recruited  its 
ranks."  The  Jesuits  have  long  resided  here,  and 
now  the  Episcopalians,  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
Presbyterians,  Southern  Baptist  Convention — "each 
of  these  societies,"  continues  the  Consul,  "  has  purchased 
land,  has  built  handsome  and  commodious  houses,  and 
will  have,  I  presume,  its  church.  .  .  .  The  Chinese 
may  well  be  bewildered  at  such  a  variety  of  sects,  and, 
for  the  present,  missionaries  are  more  numerous  than 
converts."* 

In  1888,  we  find  Rev.  Dr  Williamson  entering  into 
details  in  a  paper  read  at  Chefoo  on  3rd  September : — 
"  To  begin  with,  we  have  the  Church  of  England,  with  her 
thirty-nine  articles,  her  prayer-book,  and  her  formularies, 
all  translated,  and  she  is  striving  and  hoping  to  impose 
them  in  all  their  entirety  upon  China.  Again  we  have 
the  Presbyterians  with  the  Westminster  Confession, 
their  Longer  and  Shorter  Catechism,  their  system  of 
Church  government,  also  translated,  equally  zealous 
and  sanguine  in  their  endeavours  to  lead  the  Chinese 
to  adopt  their  system.    Further,  we  have  the  Methodists 

>  China  and  the  Gospel^  1870,  Rev.  William  Muirhead  (of  L.M.S.), 
p.  339. 

'  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (6),  1885,  p.  93. 


6  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

with  their  elaborate  orgfanisation.  The  Congregational- 
ists  with  their  form  of  government ;  the  Baptists  with 
theirs;  the  Lutheran  Church  seeking  to  reproduce  in 
China  a  facsimile  of  itself,  neither  less  or  more ;  the 
American  Episcopal  Church  with  a  like  aim.  And  so 
with  other  denominations.  What  a  spectacle  to 
thoughtful  Chinamen !  And  there  are  many  such.  No 
wonder  they  say  to  us  :  '  Agfree  among  yourselves,  and 
then  we  will  listen  to  you.'  But  this  is  not  the  worst 
aspect  of  our  divisions.  We  have  three  branches  of  the 
Episcopal  Church,  eight  different  sects  of  Presbyterians, 
six  sects  of  Methodists,  two  Congregationalists,  two 
Baptists,  besides  several  other  minor  bodies,  all  acting 
independently  of  each  other,  and  in  addition  to  all  we 
have  the  Inland  Mission,  many  of  whose  members 
belong  to  our  own  denomination,  but  the  bulk  of  whom 
disclaim  creeds  and  systems ;  and  unless  the  leaders  of 
that  Mission  receive  special  guidance  from  God,  it  will 
become  neither  more  or  less  than  another  sect."  The 
reverend  gentleman  further  tells  us  that  Shanghai  had 
seven  missions,  while  Tientsin  and  Pekin  had  five  each.^ 
Thus  far  the  sects  in  detail;  but  the  late  Mr 
Alexander  Michie  thought  that  "there  is  perhaps  a 
still  more  serious  evil  in  the  vagaries  of  hundreds  of 
irresponsible  evangelists,  who  go  about  the  country 
retailing  the  figments  of  their  own  excited  brains  as  the 
pure  gospel.  They  say  that  whatever  the  diversities  in 
their  teaching  may  be,  they  are  at  one  with  the  main 
body  in  essentials ;  which  is  a  mere  begging  of  the 
question.  How  do  they  know  what  classification  of 
'essentials'  and  'non-essentials'  their  ignorant  hearers 
may  be  making.^  On  these  missionaries'  own  showing, 
it  is  impossible  to  prevent  the  poor,  uneducated  people 
from  making  the  whole  thing  a  tangle  of  fetishism,  nor 
do  the  evangelists  always  resist  to  the  uttermost  the 
tendency  to  make  'medicine  men'  of  them,  which 
shows  itself  frequently  in  their  ignorant  followers.    On 

^  T^  Chinese  Recorder  and  Missionary  Journal^  Jan.  1889,  pp.  25-6. 


NOT  CONCENTRATION  BUT  DIFFUSION  7 

all  such  matters,  we  repeat,  we  are  dependent  on  the 
parties  interested  for  information  as  to  their  doings,  and 
as  they  are  neither  unbiassed  nor,  as  a  rule,  persons 
whose  judgment  has  been  strengthened  by  severe 
training,  their  statements  have  to  be  received  with 
some  caution.  The  most  eccentric  missionaries  are 
those,  many  of  them  single  women,  belonging  to  Mr 
Hudson  Taylor  s  China  Inland  Mission.  They  number 
480  [this  was  written  in  1891],  more  than  one-third  of 
the  total  force  of  Protestant  missionaries  in  China. 
They  are  drawn  from  every  sect  in  England,  from 
Canada,  from  Sweden,  and  perhaps  other  countries ; 
and  the  territory  of  China  is  systematically  parcelled 
out  among  them,  so  as  to  obviate  collision  and  to 
minimise  the  outward  aspect  of  their  diversities  of  creed 
and  conduct.  Members  of  other  bodies  may  look 
askance  at  the  doings  of  the  China  Inland  Mission,  as 
an  English  squire  does  at  those  of  the  Salvation  Army, 
but  they  cannot  dissociate  themselves  from  them  in  the 
eyes  of  the  Chinese,  who  make  no  fine-drawn  distinc- 
tions where  foreigners  are  concerned."^ 

Concerning  schemes  of  Theology  which  are  taught, 
the  same  authority  affirms  that  they  "would  require  a 
separate  treatise,  and  much  more  information  than  is  at 
present  available  to  elucidate."  On  the  one  hand,  it 
would  seem  that  "  modern  biblical  criticism  is  simply 
Ignored,  as  well  as  the  widening  tendency  of  the  modern 
Churches  in  matters  of  set  doctrine"  ;  and  on  the  other, 
that  "  while  even  the  cast-iron  theologians  of  the  Free 
Church  of  Scotland  and  the  stern  Presbyterians  of 
America  are  seeking  ways  of  escape  from  the  rigid 
fetters  in  which  the  famous  Westminster  Divines  have 
bound  them  these  two  hundred  years  and  more,  and  are 
actually  making  concessions  to  unbaptised  infants, 
Calvinism  is  being  diligently  inculcated  on  the  Chinese 
and  Japanese,  as  if  it  were  the  ultimate  and  indisputable 
truth.  ...  A  lady,  fresh  perhaps  from  some  theological 

^  Missionaries  in  Chtna^  1891,  Alexander  Micbie,  pp.  52-3-4. 


8  THE  CATHOLIC  CHUKCH  IN  CHINA 

seminary,  propounds  for  'Chinese  women'  —  women 
who,  on  the  testimony  of  another  experienced  and  keen- 
witted missionary  lady,  are  unable  to  grasp  the  simplest 
abstract  idea — a  scheme  of  divinity  so  elaborate  that  if 
the  salvation  of  our  bishops  were  made  conditional  on 
their  masteringr  it,  the  majority  of  their  lordships  would 
have  sorrowfully  to  accept  the  alternative.  .  .  .  One 
man  issues  a  leaflet  which  laboriously  proves  that  the 
cosmos  was  not  created  by  God,  as  is  commonly 
believed,  but  by  Jesus.  Christian  worship  is,  by  the 
same  unreason,  shown  to  be  directed  to  Jesus,  and  not 
to  God,  an  essential  distinction  beingf  made  between 
them.  It  is  not  surprising:,  after  this,  to  find  the  corol- 
lary of  justification  by  faith  worked  for  all  it  is  worth  by 
some  of  the  irresponsible  apostles,  ridden  by  a  kind  of 
quack  logic,  who  lay  it  down  plainly  to  the  Chinese  that 
Christians  need  not  be  moral,  as  they  have  only  to 
beUeve!"^ 

In  the  same  year,  1891,  we  learn  that  the  China 
News  printed  the  catechism  of  the  "Holy  Catholic 
Church  of  America,"  said  to  be  a  "product  of  two 
yoimg  renegades  from  the  Baptist  Church,  now  acting 
under  the  direction  of  a  superior,  who  has  the  genuine 
spirit  of  the  bishops  of  the  times  of  John  Bunyan."* 

In  1895,  Mr  Norman  remarking  that  "in  Shanghai 
alone  there  are  seven  missions — the  London  Mission, 
American  Presbyterian,  the  American  Episcopal,  the 
American  Episcopal  Methodists,  the  Church  Mission- 
ary Society,  the  American  Baptists,  and  the  Seventh- 
day  Baptists,*'  proceeds  to  quote  the  late  Dr 
Williamson  as  follows : — "  Here  then  we  have  seven 
sets  of  foreign  missionaries  working  seven  different 
churches ;  seven  sermons  every  Sunday,  seven  sets  of 
prayer  meetings,  seven  sets  of  communing  services, 
seven  sets  of  schools,  two  training  agencies,  seven  sets 

'  Missionaries  in  China,  pp.  58-9,  60-1. 

*  Moghuly   Mongol,    Mikado    €tnd    Missionary,    1891,    Samuel    A. 
Mutchmore,  DnD.,  voL  iu,  p.  172. 


NOT  CONCENTRATION  BUT  DIFFUSION  9 

of  buildings,  seven  sets  of  expenses^  four  or  five  versions 
of  the  Bible,  and  seven  different  hymn-books  at  least." 
"  In  the  face  of  these  facts  " — so  Mr  Norman  thinks — 
"one  is  surely  justified  in  saying  that  we  have  not  yet 
reached  a  point  of  Christian  unity  which  affords  us  any 
moral  justification  for  thrusting  our  theological  views 
by  force  of  arms  upon  heathen  nations."  ^ 

In  1900  there  appears  to  have  been  an  increase  at 
Shanghai  which,  we  gather,  "is  the  headquarters 
station  for  nearly  all  the  mission  boards  in  China, 
and  the  local  directory  lists  thirty -five  separate 
establishments  under  the  head  of  'Churches  and 
Missions,'  this  bewildering  number  of  roads  to 
Christianity  having  drawn  criticism  from  Dr  Henry 
Drummond,  and  led  others  to  wonder  if  missions  could 
not  accomplish  more  if  each  sect  had  one  separate 
province  or  district  to  itself,  as  mission  work  among 
American  Indian  tribes  has  been  apportioned  to  the 
different  denominations."^  In  Hankow  we  learn  that 
sixteen  different  religious  establishments  existed  at 
the  same  date: — "Catholic,  Protestant,  Greek,  and 
Quaker,  Methodist,  Baptist,  Presbyterian,  Episcopal 
— English,  Canadians,  Swedish,  Norwegians,  Spanish, 
Italians,  Scotch,  Americans,  and  Russians,  all  striving 
in  evangelical  ways,  and  by  their  number  confusing  the 
native." » 

In  1907,  Rev.  Dr  Gibson  writes  that: — "The 
Protestant  missionaries  in  the  Province  of  Kwang- 
tung  present  a  large  variety  of  method.  There  are 
now  close  on  twenty  different  missions  at  work  which, 
with  one  or  two  exceptions,  work  harmoniously  to- 
gether. They  are  of  different  nationalities — American, 
British,  Colonial,  German,  Scandinavian,  International 

'  PeopUs  and  Politics  of  the  Far  East^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  pp. 
306-7. 

'  China:  The  iong-lived  Empire^  1900,  Eliza  Ruhama  Scidmore, 
p.  287. 

»  Md.,  p.  372. 


10  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

— ^and  present  every  variety  of  ecclesiastical  develop- 
ment." ^ 

In  expressing  her  doubts  as  to  whether  it  will  be 
possible  to  perpetuate  the  Protestant  Book  of  Common 
Prayer  in  China  as  it  stands,  Mrs  Bishop  informs  us 
that,  "already  many  Eastern  Christians  are  claiming 
'  an  Oriental  Christ,  not  a  Christ  disguised  in  Western 
garb* — it  may  be  that  they  will  claim  too  a  form  of 
worship  which  shall  be  Oriental  both  in  thought  and 
expression,  instead  of  one  which  represents  to  them,  in 
their  most  sacred  moments,  an  exotic  creed.  "^  More- 
over, we  learn  that  one  of  the  advantages  of  conversion 
by  native  agency  is  that  "it  is  likely  to  ensure  a  more 
purely  native  type  of  Christian.  There  is  always  the 
danger  of  foreigners  thrusting  their  own  conception  of 
Christian  doctrine  and  practice  upon  the  Chinese. 
Everything  in  our  teaching  which  tends  to  de- 
nationalise must  be  rigorously  avoided.  The  tempta- 
tion, always  present  to  the  missionary,  to  follow  the 
line  of  development  with  which  he  is  familiar  in  the 
the  West,  will  end  in  creating  a  Western  cult  on 
Chinese  soil,  which  must  weaken  the  testimony  of  the 
native  Church  and  discredit  her  witness  among  the 
heathen  around."* 

The  Chinese  are  evidently  of  the  same  mind.  "  For 
several  reasons,  some  of  them  obvious,  the  relations 
between  the  Reformed  [Dutch]  and  English  Presby- 
terian missions  have  been  specially  close  and  cordial, 
becoming  closer  as  the  work  has  developed.  The 
result  has  been  not  only  co-operation  in  higher 
educational  work — academical  and  theological — but 
complete  union  in  the  establishment  of  a  single 
Church  of  the  Reformed  faith  and  Presbyterian  order, 

^  Tke  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  ed.  by  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A., 
p.  48. 

*  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop, 
F.R.G.S.,  p.  291. 

'  East  of  the  Barrier^  1902,  Rev.  J.  Miller  Graham,  p.  83. 


NOT  CONCENTRATION  BUT  DIFFUSION         11 

indigfenous  and  independent  of  ecclesiastical  connection 
with,  or  control  by,  either  parent  Church  in  Engfland  or 
America.  ...  It  has  served  as  an  example  and  inspira- 
tion for  similar  unions  in  other  mission  fields."^  This 
was  in  Fukien,  and  seems  to  have  been  imitated  in 
Shanghai,  where  Rev.  John  Darroch  tells  of  the 
formation  of  a  Chinese  Independent  Church.  "It  is 
composed  of  Chinese  Church  members  of  all  denomina- 
tions, and  aims  at  spreading  the  Gospel  without 
recourse  to  the  aid  of  foreign  governments  or  consuls. 
The  Tao-tai  of  Shanghai  has  issued  a  proclamation  in 
favour  of  this  body,  and  they  have  received  consider- 
able financial  help  from  their  compatriots  in  America." 
The  formation  of  this  Church  has,  we  are  told,  been 
viewed  with  suspicion  by  some  missionaries,  who  see 
in  it  a  premature  attempt  to  throw  off  the  restraint  of 
foreign  control ;  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  it  indicates 
the  healthy  vitality  of  the  native  Church  ...  it  marks 
the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  missions 
in  China,  and  is  a  significant  forward  step  which  may 
have  far-reaching  consequences.  "We  can  therefore 
say,  '  What  hath  God  wrought ! '  and  look  forward  with 
hopefulness  to  the  future."* 

So,  Unity  between  East  and  West  is  to  go,  and  it 
is  to  be  regarded  as  the  work  of  Jesus  Christ,  who 
prayed  that  they  that  believe  might  be  one!  It  may 
be  that  another  example  will  be  followed  in  China,  viz., 
"There  are  many  learned  and  spiritually  minded 
members  of  the  Church  of  England,"  Rev.  C.  C. 
Fenn,  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  told  the 
Centenary  Conference  of  Protestant  Missionaries  of 
the  World,  in  London,  "who  regard  what  they  term 
*  Apostolical  Succession'  as  essential  to  the  well-being 
if  not  the  being  of  the  Church.  ...  I  believe  the  great 

'  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China^  1907,  c<L  by  D. 
MacGillivray,  pp.  367-8. 

*  The  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  ed.  by  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A., 
p.  92. 


12  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

majority  of  lay  Ans^licans  .  .  .  attach  comparatively 
little  importance  to  the  fact  or  the  theory  of  the 
so-called  Apostolical  Succession,  and  that  in  India 
they  will  at  once  set  it  aside  if  it  should  assume  such 
a  shape  as  to  be  an  obstacle  to  the  larger  compre- 
hension."^ 

When  Unity  and  Apostolic  Succession  have  been 
relegated  to  the  limbo  of  exploded  notions,  the  way 
will  be  clear  for  the  doctrine  that  the  Deposit  of  Faith 
is  still  incomplete,  and  that  the  Christian  Churches  have 
gone  to  China  in  search  of  what  may  remain  to  be 
learnt  concerning  it.  This  theory  has  already  found 
some  acceptance  in  China,  apparently : — "  Where  our 
theology  is  still  one-sided  and  incomplete,  may  we  not 
look  for  large  contributions  to  it  in  days  to  come  from 
the  independent  thought  and  life  in  our  mission  fields, 
and  may  we  not  look  forward  to  the  attainment,  as  one 
of  the  ample  rewards  of  our  mission  work,  of  the  fuller 
and  more  rounded  theology  for  which  the  Church  has 
waited  so  long?  So  may  come  at  last  the  healing  of 
those  divisions  by  which  She  has  been  torn  and 
weakened  throughout  Her  chequered  history.  When 
to  Jewish  fervour,  Greek  passion,  Roman  restraint, 
French  argument,  German  depth,  English  breadth, 
Scottish  intensity  and  American  alertness  are  added 
Indian  subtlety  with  Chinese  ethical  sagacity — all 
baptised  into  the  one  Spirit — then  may  we  reach  at  last 
the  fuller  theology  worthy  of  the  worldwide  hospitalities 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  and  setting  forth  more 
nearly  the  very  thoughts  of  God."  * 

1  Report  of  Centenary  Conference  on  Protestant  Missions  of  the  Worlds 
1888,  ed.  by  Rev.  James  Johnston,  F.S.S.,  vol.  ii.,  p.  477. 

*  Mission  Problems  and  Mission  Methods  in  South  China^  1901,  J. 
Campbell  Gibson,  M.A.,  D.D.,  p.  286. 


CHAPTER  II 

FROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION 

Writing  on  the  "diversity  of  Protestant  organisations, 
which  has  been  already  mentioned  as  the  source  of 
some  confusion  to  the  Chinese  by  reason  of  the  lack  of 
co-ordination  in  their  movements  and  methods,"  Rev. 
A.  H.  Smith  warns  his  readers  that  "it  is  important  to 
guard  agfainst  the  widespread  fallacy  that  the  Chinese 
infer  from  the  phenomena  which  they  see,  that 
Christianity  is  full  of  self-contradictions,  and  that  its 
mutual  claims  refute  one  another.  This,  we  have  no 
hesitation  in  sayinsf,  is  a  Western  idea  attributed  to 
the  Chinese,  as  distinguished  from  the  one  which 
naturally  occurs  to  the  Chinese  mind.  They  are  no 
more  surprised  or  offended  at  seeing  Christianity 
presented  in  so  many  varying  lights  than  they  are 
with  their  own  'Eight  diagram'  sects,  each  one  of 
which  is  a  segment  of  a  mystic  whole,  which  is  only 
completed  by  the  sum  of  all  its  parts.  It  is  when  the 
various  divisions  of  Protestants  ignore  or  possibly 
antagonise  one  another,  that  the  Chinese  sense  of 
unity  is  offended — as  is  our  own."^ 

It  is  difficult  to  understand  what  else  the  Chinese 
can  infer  in  view  of  the  fact  that,  according  to  Dr 
Campbell  Gibson,  "it  cannot  be  made  clear  to  them 
by  explanation  how  the  Church  in  the  West  has 
become  divided  into  bodies  organised,  some  on  the 
Episcopal,  some  on  the  Congregational,  and  some  on 

*  China  in  Convulsion^  1901,  Arthur  H.  Smith,  vol.  i.,  pp.  43-3. 
u 


14  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  Presbyterian  basis.  Even  if  the  distinction  could  be 
made  clear  to  them,  they  have  neither  the  knowledge  of 
Scripture,  nor  the  experience  of  Church  life  which 
would  enable  them  to  form  an  opinion  on  the  respective 
merits  of  each  system."^ 

"An  important  conference  of  British  and  American 
missionaries,  at  which  I  was  invited  to  be  present," 
says  Colonel  Scott  Moncrieff,  "was  held  one  evening  in 
March,  1901,  to  consider  what  steps  should  be  taken 
for  mutual  co-operation.  At  the  outset  of  the  pro- 
ceedings, a  speech  was  made  by  one  of  the  Americans, 
showing  how  desirable  such  co-operation  was.  They 
had  representatives  of  several  societies  at  work,  all 
believing  in  substantially  the  same  truths,  actuated 
by  the  same  aims,  and  agreeing  as  to  methods;  but 
they  were  all  working  independently,  overlapping  in 
some  places,  neglecting  others.  There  was  evidently 
a  need  for  unison.  They  had  not  even  agreed  as  to 
the  Chinese  term  to  be  used  for  the  name  of  God,  and 
they  had  no  books  of  devotion  or  even  hymn-books 
which  they  could  use  in  common.  Another  speaker 
humorously  pointed  out  that  such  terms  as  '  Presby- 
terian,' 'Methodist,'  'Baptist,'  etc.,  were  unintelligible 
and  bewildering  to  the  natives,  who  according  to  their 
own  practical  fashion,  invented  names  for  the  various 
sects  according  to  their  characteristics,  calling  the 
Baptists  the  *  Cold-water'  Christians,  the  Methodists 
the  *  Shake-hands '  Christians  (owing  to  the  practice  of 
the  pastor  in  shaking  hands  with  each  member  of  his 
congregation  after  Church  service),  and,  I  think, 
the  American  Presbyterians  the  *  Women  -  talking ' 
Christians.  It  was  obviously  most  desirable  that 
these  names  should  be  abolished,  and  all  should  be 
united  in  one  body.  An  old  Englishman  then  said 
that,  however  desirable  all  this  might  be,  it  was 
impracticable.    The  missionaries  were  but  the  agents 

^  Mission  Problems  tmd  Mission  Methods  in  South  China,   1901, 
J.  Campbell  Gibson,  M,A.,  D.D.,  p.  196, 


FROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION  15 

and  messengers  of  the  Churches  who  sent  them.  If 
the  home  organisations  desired  to  unite,  nothing  could 
be  more  admirable.  But  as  the  home  people  supplied 
the  money,  so  they  had  the  right  to  dictate  the  policy."^ 

About  the  year  1858 — as  would  seem — Rev.  Dr 
Edkins  tell  us  that  '*  a  young  man  of  the  artisan  class 
.  .  .  entering  a  missionary  chapel,  had  heard  an  address 
on  Christianity  .  .  .  did  not  attempt  to  refute  the  argu- 
ment from  design,  nor  did  he  acknowledge  its  validity. 
He  proceeded  to  defend  himself  with  weapons  of  another 
kind.  'You  differ  from  the  Roman  Catholics.  How 
can  I  tell  whether  you  or  they  are  right  .^'  The 
conversation  as  it  continued  in  this  new  channel,"  says 
the  Doctor,  "need  not  be  further  detailed."* 

"To-day,"  we  learn  from  Dr  Rennie,  in  1865,  "the 
teacher  Sue,  who  is  a  remarkably  acute  observant  old 
Chinaman,  asked  Mr  Douglas  for  an  explanation  as  to 
how  it  was  that  the  Chinese  Christians  residing  within 
the  Legations  appeared  to  attend  to  their  devotions 
and  go  to  church  regularly,  but  that  he  had  been 
unable  to  detect  any  similar  regard  for  religion  among 
the  European  Christians.  Mr  Douglas  explained  to 
him  that  the  Chinese  Christians  in  Peking  belonged 
to  a  sect  that  had  places  of  worship  established  there, 
but  that  the  Christians  of  the  English  Legation  were 
of  a  sect  that  as  yet  had  no  place  of  public  worship,  and 
therefore  their  devotions  were  confined  to  their  own 
rooms.  Sue,  however,  could  not  understand  how  it 
was  that,  seeing  the  unity  of  both  as  Christians  was 
fully  admitted,  such  an  apparently  insuperable  barrier 
should  exist  between  them  in  r^^ard  to  unity  of 
devotion."* 

Rev.  William  Muirhead  once  asked    "an  eminent 

■  Eastern  Missions  from  a  Soldier's  Standpoint^  1907,  CoL  G.  K. 
Scott  Moncriefi^  CLE.,  pp.  1 12-3-4. 

>  Religion  in  China  (Second  Edition),  1878,  Joseph  Edkins,  D.D., 

P.97- 

•  Peking  and  the  Pekingese^  1865,  Dr  D.  F.  Rennie,  M.D.,  vol  i., 

P-350. 


1©  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

native  pastor  ...  if  he  and  his  associates  did  not 
think  that  a  union  of  all  the  Christians  in  the  neigfhbour- 
hood  would  be  a  good  thing?  His  answer  was  to  the 
following  effect :  *  We  should  rejoice  at  it,  but  there 
must  be  some  strange  principle  of  separation  between 
the  foreign  missionaries,  keeping  them  apart  from  each 
other,  which  we  neither  understand  nor  appreciate,  and 
until  a  union  is  effected  between  them  we  must  remain 
as  we  are.'"^ 

On  ist  October  1869,  Sir  Rutherford  Alcock,  British 
Minister  in  Peking,  wrote  to  the  Earl  of  Clarendon : — 
*'Then  as  to  the  other  fact,  that  these  differences, 
sectarian  and  others,  are  noticed  by  the  Chinese,  and 
give  them  a  plausible  excuse  for  scoffing  at  missionaries, 
as  teachers  of  error  rather  than  of  truth — and  dis- 
sentient doctrines  and  diverse  forms  of  worship.  Why, 
this  constitutes  one  of  the  most  common  charges  of  the 
Literati  and  Officials,  for  an  example  of  which  see  a 
denunciatory  placard  posted  extensively  in  Honan,  a 
translation  of  which  was  published  in  the  Shanghai 
papers  in  1866,  wherein  will  be  found  the  following 
passage: — 'Although  the  adherents  of  the  religion 
only  worship  Jesus,  yet  being  divided  into  the  two 
sections  of  Roman  Catholics  and  Protestants,  these  are 
continually  railing  at  each  other,  so  that  we  have  no 
means  of  determining  which  is  right  and  which  is 
wrong.     * 

"  Everywhere  I  see  the  radiance  of  a  truth  whose 
beauty  is  the  same,"  says  the  Military  Attache  of 
China  in  Paris,  '^  and  I  seem  to  hear  an  immense  choir 
in  which  all  the  voices  of  heaven  and  earth  join 
harmoniously;  and  when,  waking  from  the  enchant- 
ment of  this  dream,  I  listen  to  the  tumultuous  clamours 
of  a  world  become  a  chaos  of  beliefs,  my  spirit  is  full  of 
amazement,  and  I  could  doubt  that  truth  existed,  but 

^  China  and  the  Gospel^  1870^  Rev.  William  Muirhead  (of  Iiondon 
Missionary  Society),  p.  24a 

Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (9),  1870,  p.  26. 


PROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION  17 

that  my  conscience  forces  me  to  believe  in  spite  of 
myself.  We  have  no  occasion  to  envy  the  West  its 
religious  beliefs,  although  we  do  not  look  at  them  from 
the  same  standpoint."  ^ 

"Occidentals  follow  one  religion,"  Admiral  P'eng 
Yii-lin  informs  his  compatriots,  "which  in  process  of 
time  became  divided  into  three  branches.  England, 
Germany,  Denmark,  Holland,  Sweden,  Norway,  and 
Switzerland  follow  the  Jesuit  Church  (the  author 
evidently  confounds  Jesuits  with  Protestants,  whose 
name  [Yeh-su  Kiao]  in  Chinese  differs  but  little),  Italy, 
Austro- Hungary,  Bavaria,  France,  Spain,  Portugal, 
Belgium  follow  the  Roman  Catholic.  Asia  Minor, 
East  Europe,  Russia,  and  Greece  follow  the  Greek 
Church.  These  three  form  independent  and  exclusive 
Churches.  Even  in  the  West  they  have  already 
quarrelled  with  each  other.  ..."  * 

"  When  a  Mongol  is  pressed  to  accept  Christianity, 
he  professes  himself  bewildered  by  the  various  forms  of 
it  with  which  he  comes  into  contact,"  wrote  the  late  Mr 
Gilmour.  "  Of  old  he  has  known  the  Russian  Christianity 
of  the  Greek  Church.  Most  probably  he  has  heard  or 
seen  something  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion  which 
has  large  colonies  of  Chinese  adherents  inhabiting 
localities  either  in,  or  bordering  on,  Mongolia,  and  now 
he  is  presented  with  a  third  form  of  Christianity.  The 
Russian  says  his  is  the  best  form,  the  Roman  Catholic 
advances  as  stout  a  claim  for  his  system,  and  the 
Protestant  not  only  makes  a  similar  claim,  but  offers  to 
prove  that  his  is  the  best  of  the  three."  • 

"  Some  years  ago,"  Mr  Archibald  told  the  London 
Missionary  Conference,  '*  there  was  a  mission  manned  by 

^  TAe  Chinese^  painted  by  themselves^  CoL  Tcheng  Ki-Tong  (trans- 
lated from  the  French  by  James  Millington),  p.  19. 

*  Indulgent  Treatment  of  Fanignersy  written  by  Admiral  P'eng  Yii- 
lin  and  Wang  Chih-chun,  originally  printed  at  Canton,  date  uncertain. 
Reprint  Shanghai  i885;(translated  by  *^  A  True  Friend  of  China  "),  pp.  5-6. 

'  Amat^  the  Mongols^  1870^  Rev.  James  Gilmour,  M.A.y  pp.  i99-2oa 

B 


18  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

a  brother  who  was  a  kindly,  God-fearing  man,  and  who 
was  a  great  help  to  us  all ;  but  a  change  occurred.  A 
new  bishop  came  out  who  had  new  clergy  and  new 
views,  and  he  made  a  new  departure.  In  fact  he  talked 
about  '  the  sin  of  sectarianism '  .  .  .  the  result  is  this 
— that  confusion  has  been  introduced.  .  .  .  Now  what 
is  to  be  done  I  do  not  know.  An  old  missionary 
writes :  *  Is  it  not  pitiable  that,  after  labouring  thirty 
years  in  this  land,  I  should  find  men,  who  I  baptised  in 
their  infancy,  twenty  years  ago,  are  to-day  discussing 
the  question  whether  I  am  a  Minister  of  Christ  or 
not?'"^ 

Of  the  American  Protestant  Episcopal  Church, 
otherwise  the  "  Holy  Catholic  Church,"  at  Hankow, 
we  learn  from  Mr  Cornaby: — "Representatives  have 
before  now  published  tracts  in  Chinese,  stating  that  we 
[Wesleyans]  are  no  Church  to  all,  and  applying  to  all 
Nonconformists  the  strong  denunciations  of  the  Book 
of  Jude,  a  length  to  which  the  Papists  have  never  gone. 
.  .  .  We  should  welcome  the  Church  Missionary 
Society  here,  but  these  American  Ritualists  are  not 
the  most  helpful  neighbours  possible."^ 

"  There  is  no  need,"  thinks  Wen  Ching,  **  to  dilate  on 
the  absurdity  of  introducing  into  China  a  great  number 
of  contending  sects,  who  not  only  confound  the  cause 
of  Christianity,  but  also  sow  the  seed  of  civil  war 
between  the  natiye  converts."* 

Later  he  refers  to  the  "mutual  contempt  in  which 
the  converts  of  different  sects  regard  one  another. 
There  is  no  real  feeling  of  love  or  charity  between  the 
worshippers  of  Jesus  [Protestants]  and  the  worshippers 
of  the  Lord  of  the  Heavens  [Catholics].  The  enmity 
between  the  missionaries  is  perhaps  less  edifying. 
Meanwhile,  the  heathen  can  make  neither  head  nor  tail 

*  CenUncay  Coftferetice  on  Protestant  Missions  of  ike  IVorid^  1888,  ed. 
by  Rev.  James  Johnston,  F.S.S.,  vol  ii.,  pp.  449-50. 

*  Rambles  in  Central  China^  1896,  W.  Arthur  Cornaby,  p.  11. 
^  The  Chinese  Crisis  from  Within^  1901,  Wen  Ching,  p.  316. 


FROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION  19 

of  the  peculiar  intestine  dissensions  which  rend  these 
sects  asunder."^  And  Professor  Parker  mentions  "a 
certain  Mr  Han,  introduced  as  a  Protestant  convert. 
•  .  .  He  always  spoke  respectfully  of  Mr  Jonathan 
Lees,  the  missionary  who  appears  to  have  originally 
taken  him  up ;  but  he  lost  no  time  in  asking  me  how  it 
was  that  some  Protestants  were  not  allowed  to  preach 
in  Church  of  England  places,  and  that  no  Protestants 
at  all  believed  the  teaching  of  the  Roman  Catholics," 
and  argued  that  as  it  seemed  permissible  for  Europeans 
to  differ.  Chinamen  also  were  at  liberty  to  reject  all.* 

"  I  think  I  am  only  doing  the  Protestant  mission- 
aries simple  justice  when  I  state  that  their  efforts  have 
been  attended  with  exceptional  success,  and  this 
although  it  is  but  a  short  while  ago  since  they  ceased  to 
count  their  converts  by  hundreds."  Thus  wrote  Mr 
Consul  Medhurst,  of  Shanghai,  in  1872.  He  con- 
tinues : — "  Their  progress  might  have  been  yet  more 
marked,  in  my  opinion,  could  they  have  been  content  to 
leave  denominational  differences  at  home,  and  could 
they  have  avoided  the  unhappy  controversies  in  respect 
to  the  best  rendering  of  the  term  for  God,  which  have 
not  only  occasioned  disunion  amongst  themselves,  but 
have  tended  to  confuse  the  minds  of  the  natives  as  to 
the  character  and  attributes  of  the  Deity."  ^ 

"  Although  little  is  said  by  way  of  controversy  on 
this  subject,"  says  Rev.  Dr  Wheeler,  ''and  the  odium 
theologicum  is  a  thing  unknown  in  the  Protestantism  of 
China,  it  cannot  reasonably  be  doubted  that  the 
different  words  in  the  literature  and  in  the  preaching, 
used  to  signify  the  first  and  third  Persons  in  the  Trinity, 
have  done  much  to  confuse  the  native  mind."* 

In  1892,  Lord  Curzon  found  the  same  state  of 
a£&irs: — "The  missionaries  have. not  agreed  among 

'  The  Chinese  Crisis  from  Within^  1901,  Wen  Ching,  pp.  317-8. 
'  John  Chinaman  and  a  Few  Others^  1901,  E  .H.  Parker,  pp.  180-1. 
'  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathay^  1872,  W.  H.  Medhurst,  p.  39. 
*  The  Foreigner  in  China^  1881,  Rev.  L.  N.  Wheeler,  D.D.,  p.  172. 


20  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

themselves  as  to  the  Chinese  word  to  express  the  single 
Deity  whom  they  preach  .  •  .  with  the  result  of  com- 
plete bewilderment  to  the  native  understanding,  ill  able 
to  cope  with  the  subtleties  of  theological  logomachy." 
The  Jesuits  adopt  the  title  Tien  Chu  (Lord  of  Heaven) ; 
The  Americans  prefer  the  more  impalpable  Chen  Shen 
(True  Spirit)  ;  The  English  adopt  the  Chinese  Shang-H 
(Supreme  Lord)  ^— with  resulting  inconvenience,  as 
"  almost  all  versions  of  the  Scriptures  and  many  tracts 
are  published  in  two  editions.  In  one  of  these  Shangti, 
in  the  other  Shin  is  used  as  the  term  for  God.  In  some 
cases  a  third  edition  is  published  with  the  term  Tien- 
Chao."^ 

'*  The  spirit  of  unity  maintained  among  the  Christians 
in  Canton,"  says  Mr  Henry,  who  laboured  there  for  ten 
years,  "is  most  gratifying.  The  sectarian  differences 
are  comparatively  slight,  and  the  distinctions  are  more 
in  name  than  in  reality.  As  long  as  the  native 
Churches  are  connected  ecclesiastically  with  home 
Churches  those  names  will  be  kept  up.  The  para- 
mount importance  of  uniting  on  the  main  issues  and 
of  presenting  a  single  gospel  to  the  people  has  kept 
the  missionaries  from  exaggerating  differences  of 
creed."  It  would  seem  that  the  all-absorbing  "Term 
Question "  (as  this  difference  of  nomenclature  for  the 
word  "God"  is  called)  has  come  to  the  rescue,  and 
round  it  controversy  has  raged,  "so  that  points  of 
theology  between  Methodists  and  Presbyterians,  Con- 
gregationalist  and  Baptist,  have  been  left  in  the  back- 
ground. .  .  .  The  creed  of  the  Church  of  Christ  in 
Canton,  if  ever  they  unite  in  a  common  expression  of 
belief,  will  be  something  which  the  wisest  cannot  yet 
presume  to  prophesy  ...  the  form  of  Church  govern- 
ment they  will  adopt  cannot  now  be  determined."  • 

1  Prvdiems  of  the  Far  East^  1894,  Hon.  George  N.  Curzon,  M.P., 
pp.  31 1-2. 

2  Christian  Progress  in  China^  1889,  Arnold  Foster,  B.A.,  p.  146. 
'  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  pp.  349-50. 


FROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION  21 

Writing  in  1900,  Mr  Krausse  reiterates  the  same 
story  : — *'  The  rival  missionary  societies  in  China  teach 
religion  each  according  to  its  own  lights,  and  are  not 
even  agreed  as  to  the  Chinese  equivalent  for  the  name 
of  the  Creator !  Small  wonder,  then,  that  the  Celestials 
laugh  at  our  attempts  to  reform  a  people  who  have 
followed  the  same  creed  for  thousands  of  years,  and 
who,  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other  are 
taught  the  same  dogma  in  identically  the  same  terms.  "^ 

And  the  natural  result  appears  in  the  matter  of  the 
"Term  Question,"  when  the  logical  Chinese  say: — 
"  Foreign  nations  have  each  their  deities,  why  not  we 
ours?"« 

Though  it  would  seem  that  the  controversy  still 
smoulders  in  some  quarters,  it  may  be  that  we  shall  one 
day  see  it  extinguished.  As  far  back  as  1891  we  learn, 
on  the  authority  of  Mr  Alexander  Michie: — "With 
better  knowledge  most  of  the  Protestant  missionaries 
are  now  unostentatiously  adopting  the  term  which  was 
used  by  the  early  Jesuits.  But  what  a  sacrifice  to  mere 
words — *  husks '  as  the  late  Dr  Williamson  ventured  to 
call  them,  to  the  scandal  of  his  missionary  brethren."^ 

Of  more  importance  appears  the  startling  fact  of 
difference  of  opinion  concerning  baptism  thus : — After 
a  review  of  the  "direct  part"  of  missionary  work,  Mrs 
Bishop  continues : — "  This,  in  brief,  is  the  teaching  of  all 
Protestant  missionaries  in  China,  to  whatever  Church 
they  belong,  and  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  all  regard 
baptism  as  an  obligatory  confession  of  faith,  and  as  the 
evidence  of  a  complete  break  with  the  beliefs  and 
practices  of  heathenism."* 

^  The  Far  East^  its  History  and  its  Question^  190Q,  Alexis  Krausse,  p. 
211. 

'  Tknmgk  the  Yang-tse  Gorges^  1898  (Second  Edition),  Archibald 
John  Little,  pp^  iSS-^- 

'  Missionaries  in  China^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  49- 

*  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Btyand,  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
p.  520. 


22  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Mr  Stanley  Smith  desires  "large  discretionary 
powers"  for  missionaries  in  the  exercise  of  which, 
"Baptism  and  the  Supper  of  the  Lord"  are  not 
"  to  bulk  more  largely  in  their  teaching  than  the  few 
places  in  which  these  ordinances  are  mentioned  in 
Scripture  would  allow,"  and  above  all  things,  in  not 
using  "these  simple  rites  as  a  stepping-stone  to  gain 
ascendancy  over  their  fellow  Christians  by  an  imagined 
superiority  which  they  assume  to  possess  owing  to 
some  mystical  powers  supposed  to  attach  to  their 
ministerial  office."^ 

"The  missionary  has  constantly  to  guard  his 
converts,"  so  Rev.  J.  Miller  Graham  gives  us  to 
understand,  "against  the  tendency  to  set  a  too  high 
value  on  the  efficacy  of  rites  like  Baptism  and  the 
Lord's  Supper.  I  have  heard  of  a  newly  baptised 
convert  who  immediately  after  his  initiation  seized 
the  font  of  water  with  trembling  hands  and  drank 
it  off;  he  doubtless  believed  that  the  water  pos- 
sessed some  magical  virtue  that  would  cleanse  him  of 
his  sins."* 

Hence  in  1887,  Mr  Archibald  Little  could  not  "but 
agree  with  P^re  Amand  David,  who  doubts  if  China 
will  ever  be  Christianised,  especially  now  that  innumer- 
able different  sects  of  Protestantism  from  Europe  and 
America  have  entered  the  field,  and  rendered  confusion 
worse  confounded  to  the  naturally  sceptical  Chinese 
mind."» 

In  the  conclusion  of  the  paper  previously  referred  to, 
read  by  him  at  Chefoo,  the  late  Dr  Williamson  said : — 
"Let  no  man  scoff  at  our  divisions.  They  are  the 
result  of  life  and  vigour  and  the  accident  of  imperfect 
knowledge.    There  is  far  more  harmony  and  unity  of 

»  China  from  Within^  1901,  Stanley  P.  Smith,  B.A.  (fonnerly  of 
Trinity  College,  Cambridge ;  and  China  Inland  Mission),  pp.  209-10. 

'  East  of  the  Barrier^  1902,  Rev.  J.  Miller  Graham,  p.  73. 

'  Through  the  Yang-tse  Gorges^  1898  (Second  Edition),  Archibald 
John  Little,  F.R.G.S.,  p.  155. 


FROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION  23 

system  and  feeling  among  us  than  the  Romanists 
or  any  other  religionists.  We  are  all  agreed  on 
'essentials.*  .  .  .  I  do  not  even  condemn  sects.  .  .  . 
They  were  a  necessity  of  the  time.  But,  as  these  times 
pass  and  circumstances  alter,  the  need  for  them  also 
passes  away.  Why  should  we  perpetuate  them? 
Above  all,  why  should  we  introduce  sects  into  China  ?  ^ 
.  .  .  Something  must  be  done.  In  our  present  divided 
state  we  shall  never  Christianise  China."* 

However,  in  1891,  Mr  Michie  could  say  that:— 
"  Signs  are,  however,  beginning  to  be  observed  of  both 
individuals  and  societies  becoming  alive  to  the  serious 
evils  of  the  schismatical  spirit,"  ^.^.,  the  periodical 
conferences  at  Shanghai  .  .  .  ''some  of  the  more  pro- 
gressive missionaries  .  .  .  throwing  over  the  traditions 
of  their  fathers,  have  declared  openly  for  episcopacy 
as  the  true  and  scriptural  form  of  Church  govern- 
ment"* 

Among  these  signs  we  may  quote  from  a  paper  read 
at  the  Missionary  Conference  in  London  three  years 
before — once  more  by  Rev.  Dr  Williamson — in  which 
we  find  the  following: — "Worst  of  all,  we  do  the 
Chinese  great  injustice  in  keeping  them  isolated  from 
each  other.  We  create  controversies  and  bickerings. 
We  deaden  their  Christian  instincts.  We  positively 
retard  vital  religion  among  the  native  converts.  .  .  . 
They  say  plainly :  *  It  is  you  foreigners  that  keep  us 
apart/  .  .  .  'We  have  thought  the  matter  over,  we 
are  prepared  for  union,'  said  a  leading  native  pastor 
to  a  friend  of  mine.  '  It  is  you  foreign  missionaries 
who  keep  us  separated.  You  are  to  blame.'  My  friend 
asked,  '  What  about  baptism  ? '  '  We  have  considered 
that  too,'  he  replied,  'we  will  immerse  those  who 
prefer  it,  and  baptise  by  effusion  those  who  prefer  that 
form.*     So  it  is  then  for  the  most  part,  they  can  see  no 

»  The  Chinese  Recorder  and  Missi<mary  Journal^  Feb.  1889,  pp.  72-3. 

»  Ibid.,  p.  80. 

^  Missionaries  in  China,  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  pp.  91-2. 


24  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

force  in  our  differences.  They  feel  its  evil  effects,  and 
had  they  the  power  they  would  unite."  ^ 

At  the  Missionary  Conference  held  in  Shanghai  in 
1890,  Rev.  Y.  J.  Allen  laid  it  down  that  in  view  of  the 
changed  aspect  of  China,  the  first  obligation  imposed 
was  that  of  unity.  "  And  now  it  would  seem,"  said  the 
reverend  gentleman,  "the  time  is  at  hand,  when  the 
Christian  missionaries  should  as  one  man  rise  to  the 
dignity  of  the  situation,  the  level  of  Christ's  standpoint 
when  He  prayed  for  the  unity  of  His  disciples  and  the 
unity  of  their  converts,  to  the  end  that  they  might  all 
be  one,  and  that  the  world  might  have  this  supreme 
evidence  of  His  mission  from  God  the  Father."* 

Rev.  Dr  Nevius  said  that  **  the  question  of  intro- 
ducing into  China  the  differences  and  dissensions  of  the 
Churches  of  the  West  confronts  us,  and  it  is  for  us  to  con- 
sider solemnly  whether  this  is  the  work,  or  any  part  of  the 
work,  to  which  the  Master  has  called  us."  Defending 
denominationalism  in  the  past,  as  an  experimental 
stage,  necessary  for  the  settlement  of  questions  of 
doctrine  and  policy,  Dr  Nevius  asked  if  it  had  not  con- 
tinued long  enough,  and  whether  it  would  not  be 
possible  to  select  and  combine  the  excellences  of  all. 
"  Our  responsibility  in  this  matter  we  cannot  evade  or 
relegate  to  our  successors.  ...  It  is  largely  for  us  to 
determine  whether  the  Church  of  the  future  shall  be  a 
divided  Church,  or  the  Church  for  which  Christ  prayed, 
presenting  in  her  unity  the  proof  of  Her  divine  com- 
mission, securing  through  obedience  the  presence  of  her 
divine  Lord,  going  forth  to  the  spritual  conquest  of  the 
world,  '  fair  as  the  moon,  clear  as  the  sun,  and  terrible 
as  an  army  with  banners.' "' 

Rev.  John  McCarthy,  of  the  China  Inland  Mission, 

^  Record  of  Centenary  Cortference  on  Protestant  MisHom  of  the  World^ 
1888,  vol.  ii.,  p.  462. 

*  Records  of  General  Conference  of  Protestant  Missionaries  of  China 
held  at  Shanghai^  1890,  pp.  20-1. 

*  Ibid,^  pp.  176-7. 


FROM  CONFUCIUS  TO  CONFUSION  26 

in  a  paper  on  ''Co-operation/'  said  that  if  Christianity 
was  one,  and  they  came  to  China  to  make  this  known, 
it  was  of  the  first  importance  '*  that  the  truth  should  be 
iUusirated  as  well  as  preached,  and  that  the  effects  of 
the  Gospel  should  be  shown  forth  in  a  tangfible  form 
that  will  strike  the  heathen  mind.  Nothing  could  do 
this  more  clearly  than  a  manifestation  of  the  power  of 
the  living  God  in  controlling  by  His  Spirit,  and  guiding 
to  unity  of  action,  hearts,  whose  plans  would  naturally 
be  so  diverse."  The  "oft-used  Sunday  school  oration 
illustration,  which  represents  the  various  distinct 
missions  as  so  many  '  regiments  of  one  great  army,*  all 
having  '  the  one  grand  aim  in  view,'  and  fighting  under 
'  the  one  old  flag,' "  he  stigmatised  as  untruthful,  tending 
to  "  throw  dust  in  the  eyes,  and  prevent  us  from  seeing 
the  great  blunder  that  is  perpetrated  and  perpetuated." 
Comparing  the  management  on  earth  of  spiritual  and 
temporal  armies,  the  children  of  this  world  were  wiser, 
for  "they  would  never  adopt  our  methods."  They 
were  all  familiar  with  the  fact  that  an  imitation  of  this 
united  action  had  often  been  attempted ;  and  they 
knew,  too,  "how  inadequate  all  mere  outward  rules  and 
regulations  are  to  maintain  a  unity  of  action,  which  can 
only  really  be  of  any  avail  when  it  is  the  spontaneous 
outcome  of  the  same  life  dwelling  in  the  various 
members  of  the  one  body."  Christ's  prayer  for  union 
had  been  too  long  neglected.  To  relegate  united 
action  to  millennial  times,  or  to  the  eternal  state,  was  to 
fail  to  grasp  the  Saviour's  purpose.  "The  testimony 
is  required  fwwt;,"  said  the  reverend  gentleman. 

As  to  the  excuse  for  the  present  state  of  things, 
that  "  the  mystical  body  of  Christ  is  composed  of  all 
those  who  are  His,  from  the  various  branches  of  the 
Church  militant  and  those  in  glory,"  he  asked : — "  Will 
anyone  say  that  our  Blessed  Lord  prayed  that  the 
world  might  see  H  is  mystical  body  ?  "  No— inconvenient 
as  the  conclusion  might  be  to  most  of  them — it  was  a 
sorrowful  fact  that  the  preached  Gospel  still  lacked  the 


26  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

strongest  credentials  that  Christ  Himself  had  to  bestow 
for  commendinsf  it  to  the  attention  of  the  world. 
Christians  lost  much  themselves,  but  the  world  was 
betn£^  lost  because  of  the  want  of  united  action  on  their 
part.  If,  instead  of  making  excuses  for  failure,  or  insist* 
ingf  on  the  perpetuation  of  what  could  not  in  the  least 
be  considered  God-given  arrangements,  the  Lord's 
people  would  recognise  the  evil  of  separation,  and 
humbling  themselves  before  God,  would  seek  from 
Him  the  mighty  working  of  His  Spirit,  it  could  not  be 
long  before  His  approval  would  be  manifested,  and 
even  united  Church  action  be  found  not  so  impracticable 
as  it  seemed  then.  "If  the  fathers  in  the  Churches, 
'filled  with  the  knowledge  of  His  will,'  were  bent  on 
doing  that  will  at  all  costs,  whatever  the  immediate 
results  might  be,  one  could  only  expect  that  the  purpose 
and  prayer  of  the  Saviour  would  be  soon  fulfilled ;  all 
would  be  one,  and  great  blessing  would  come  to  our 
sin-cursed  earth  as  the  result." 

"  I  grant,"  continued  Mr  McCarthy,  "  that  it  does 
seem  rather  out  of  place  for  us  here  to  be  considering 
the  question  of  co-operation  at  all.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
if  all  the  missionaries  in  China  were  fully  convinced  of 
the  value  and  importance  of  united  action,  for  the  most 
part  their  connection  with  home  Churches  would 
altogether  prevent  any  practical  step  towards  closer 
union  or  united  effort ;  and  one  fails  to  see  how  it  can 
be  otherwise,  while  missionaries  represent  denomina- 
tional and  even  political  differences  to  the  Chinese, 
instead  of  only  representing  the  Christ  of  God."  ^ 

*  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  pp.  594-6. 


CHAPTER    III 

"UNUM  IN    CHRISTO" 

Under  the  above  motto  sat  the  Chairman  who  presided 
over  the  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference, 
which  met  at  Shanghai  from  2Sth  April  to  7th  May  of 
the  year  1907.  This  Conference  included  Protestant 
missionaries  from  every  part  of  China,  as  well  as 
visitors  from  Great  Britain  and  elsewhere,  to  the 
number  of  1 1 70.  Of  these,  122  were  ex  officio  members, 
354  missionary  delegates,  and  the  visitors  accounted 
for  the  remaining  694.  The  proceedings  were  reprinted 
from  the  North  China  Daily  News  in  a  volume  of  some 
S3  foolscap  pages,  the  Editor  of  which  remarks  that : — 
**It  is  probable  that  the  Conference  will  go  down  to 
history  as  commensurate  in  importance  with  the  great 
Councils  of  the  Church  in  the  West."  ^ 

Previous  to  the  Conference,  the  Anglican  Clergy, 
the  Medical  missionaries,  the  Baptists,  and  the  Presby- 
terian Council  of  Federation  had  held  meetings ;  and 
on  Thursday,  2Sth  April,  an  Inaugural  Reception  was 
held  in  the  Town  Hall,  at  which  "fully  1500  people 
were  present,"  representing  83  different  societies  or 
agencies  working  in  China,  "with  varying  organisations 
behind,  but  united  in  the  endeavour  to  bring  Christian 
enlightenment  to  the  people  of  this  country."  * 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day,  there  was  also  a 
Preliminary    Business    Meeting,  at    which   addresses 

*  China  CenUtiary  Missumary  Conference^  1907.  Reprint  firom  North 
China  Daily  News^  Editor's  Note.  ^  IhiiL^  p.  3. 


28  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

were  made,  Chairmen  and  Vice-Chairmen  elected, 
Rules  of  Procedure  adopted,  etc. 

The  first  session  of  the  Conference  was  held  on 
Friday,  26th  April,  in  the  Martyrs'  Memorial  Hall  of  the 
new  Chinese  Y.M.C.A.,  Dr  Arthur  Smith  in  the  chair. 

The  missionaries  of  South  China  presented  the 
Chairman  with  a  presidential  hammer,  made  of  wood 
cut  from  a  tree  overshadowing  the  grave  of  Robert 
Morrison  at  Macao.  Dr  Arthur  Smith,  in  accepting, 
hoped  that  there  would  be  as  much  unanimity  in  this 
Conference  as  there  was  apparently  in  the  missionary 
body  in  1807.    (Laughter  and  applause.)^ 

Dr  J.  C.  Gibson  (E.  P.  M.,  Swatow)  presented  the 
Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  Chinese  Church  and 
Resolutions.  In  his  address,  he  said  that : — "  Resolu- 
tions II.  to  VII.  dealt  with  the  subject  foremost  in  all 
their  hearts. .  .  .  Omitting  general  societies  like  the  Bible 
Societies,  there  were  some  fifty  mission  bodies  at  work, 
and  till  lately  at  least,  they  had  been  planting  fifty 
Chinese  Churches.  The  Committee  was  sure  the 
Conference  would  say  with  one  heart,  'This  in  future 
shall  not  be.'  Their  divisions  bulked  largely  in  the 
public  eye.  They  were  pointed  to  by  writers  of  the 
Roman  Church.  They  disturbed  the  minds  of  the 
Chinese  Churches,  though  to  a  less  extent  than  was 
often  alleged.  .  .  .  The  Committee  asked  them,  there- 
fore, to  begin  the  Conference  with  a  frank  and  earnest 
declaration  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  that  they  were  one." 
.  .  .  He  regretted  that  the  Baptist  Church  was  not 
represented  on  the  Committee,  and  had  endeavoured  to 
correct  this  by  conferring,  and  "  the  Committee  hoped 
to  keep  their  language  within  bounds,  that  all  might 
agree,  but  there  were  some  things  that  were  not  satis- 
factory to  some  of  the  Baptist  brethren."  The  Com- 
mittee hoped  to  attain  unity  by  sending  back  the 
wording  to  which  objection  was  taken.  .  .  .  He  believed 
difficulty  in  the  minds  of  the  natives  arose,  not  from  the 

^  China  OnUnary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  p.  5. 


«XJNUM  IN  CHRISTO**  29 

work  of  the  different  missions,  but  of  explaining  to  them 
what  the  differences  were.  **  Beyond  distinguishing 
that  Protestants  were  one  mission,  and  there  was  also 
a  French  Mission,  the  Chinese  Church  did  not  know 
any  difference.  It  was  imperative  that  they  should 
stand  apart  from  the  Church  of  Rome.  (Hear,  hear.)  " 
In  concluding,  the  reverend  speaker  made  an  eloquent 
appeal  for  unity  in  the  mission-field. 

The  summary  of  his  paper — which  was  taken  as 
read — commences: — "The  great  achievement  of  the 
first  century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China  has  been 
the  planting  of  the  Christian  Church."  ^ 

Resolution  I. — entirely  devotional  in  character — 
was  then  submitted.  Dr  Graves  (Am.  S.  Bapt., 
Canton)  moved  to  refer  the  Resolution  back  to  the 
Committee,  some  of  whom  should  be  Baptists.  •  .  . 
"They  agreed  as  to  fundamentals,  but  let  them  not 
touch  a  stone  wall  with  untempered  mortar.  Let  them 
have  such  a  wall  as  would  commend  itself  to  alL" 

After  some  discussion — the  Resolution  was  put,  and 
declared  unanimously  adopted,  whereupon  Rev.  R.  E. 
Chambers  (Am.  S.  Bapt.,  Canton) — "I  beg  to  state 
that  the  Resolution  was  not  unanimously  adopted."^ 

Resolution  II.  was  next  introduced: — "Whereas,  it 
is  frequently  asserted  that  Protestant  Missions  present 
a  divided  front  to  those  outside,  and  create  confusion 
by  a  large  variety  of  inconsistent  teaching ;  and  where- 
as, the  minds  both  of  Christian  and  non-Christian 
Chinese  are  in  danger  of  being  thus  misled  into  an 
exaggerated  estimate  of  our  differences,  this  Centenary 
Conference,  representing  all  Protestant  missions  at 
present  working  in  China,  unanimously  and  cordially 
declares : — 

'That,  unanimously  holding  the  Scriptures  of  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments  as  the  supreme  standard  of 
faith  and   practice,  and  holding  firmly  the  primitive 

^  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  p.  5. 
<  Ibid^  p.  6. 


30  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Catholic  faith  summarised  in  the  Apostles'  Creed  and 
sufficiently  stated  in  the  Nicene  Creed ;  and  in  view  of 
our  knowledge  of  each  other  s  doctrinal  symbols, 
history,  work,  and  character,  we  gladly  recognise 
ourselves  as  already  one  body,  teaching  one  way  of 
eternal  life,  and  calling  men  into  one  holy  fellowship; 
and  as  one  in  our  teaching  as  to  the  love  of  God  the 
Father,  God  the  Son,  and  God  the  Holy  Ghost ;  in  our 
testimony  as  to  sin  and  salvation,  and  our  homage  to 
the  Divine  and  Holy  Redeemer  of  men ;  one  in  our  call 
to  the  purity  of  the  Christian  life,  and  in  our  witness  to 
the  splendours  of  the  Christian  hope. 

*  We  frankly  recognise  that  we  differ  as  to  methods 
of  administration  and  Church  government ;  that  some 
among  us  differ  from  others  as  to  the  administration  of 
Baptism ;  and  that  there  are  some  differences  as  to  the 
statement  of  the  doctrine  of  Predestination  or  the 
election  of  Grace. 

'  But  we  unite  in  holding  that  these  exceptions  do 
not  invalidate  the  assertion  of  our  real  unity  in  our 
common  witness  to  the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God.' "  ^ 

In  the  discussion  which  ensued,  Dr  Martin  pro- 
posed to  omit  the  references  to  the  Creeds ;  to  add  to  the 
part  ending  "  already  one  body  "  the  words  "  in  spirit  and 
aim  " ;  and  to  delete  the  statement  of  differences  as  to 
Baptism,  etc. 

Rev.  D.  E.  Hoste  objected  to  omit  the  references 
to  the  Creeds. 

Bishop  Cassels  proposed  consideration  by  para- 
graphs, which  was  agreed  to,  and  the  first  paragraph 
carried  unanimously. 

Rev.  C.  G.  McDaniel  (Am.  S.  Bapt.,  Soochow) 
wished  to  delete  reference  to  Creeds. 

Bishop  Roots  believed  no  fault  could  be  found  with 

the  Creeds,  if  they  were  considered  sentence  by  sentence. 

They  formed  something  definite  to  build  upon,  and  yet 

ought  not  to  cause  difficulty  to  any  Christian  conscience. 

^  China  Centefiary  Missionary  Conference^  1907^  p.  8. 


«  UNUM  IN  CHRISTO  "  31 

Dr  H.  C.  Du  Bose  (A. P.M.,  Soochow)  said  that 
the  word  "unanimously"  in  "unanimously  holding  the 
Scriptures,"  presented  a  great  difficulty.  A  single 
objector  might  hold  up  the  Conference. 

A  general  discussion  ensued,  in  which  Noncon- 
formists emphasised  the  basing  of  their  faith  on  the 
Scriptures  and  not  on  any  Creed.^ 

Rev.  W.  Nelson  Bitton  (L.M.S.,  Shanghai)  remarked 
that  the  Conference  had  come  together  to  consider 
bases  of  unity,  but  individual  members  were  succes- 
sively voicing  their  own  idiosyncrasies.  He  protested 
against  an  attempt  to  force  the  imprimatur  of  any 
Western  Church  on  to  the  Creed  of  a  new  Eastern 
Church,  which  should  be  left  to  formulate  its  own 
Creed  in  its  own  time. 

An  attempt  having  been  made  to  close  the  dis- 
cussion, Bishop  Graves  said  the  astounding  statement 
had  been  made  that  there  were  statements  in  the 
Apostles'  Creed  which  could  not  be  accepted.  While 
discussing  unity  at  the  beginning  of  their  Conference 
they  had  got  on  dangerous  ground.  The  Anglican 
Church  had  yielded  much  that  it  held  dear,  but  if  the 
references  to  the  primitive  Catholic  Faith  and  the 
Creeds  were  omitted,  they  could  not  join  in  these 
Resolutions.  The  Conference  could  not  forge  any  more 
harmful  weapon  to  place  in  the  hands  of  the  Roman 
Church  than  the  slightest  weakness  whatever  in 
expressing  its  belief  in  that  primitive  Catholic  Faith. 
Rev.  T.  W.  Pearce  pleaded  for  more  of  the  spirit  of  the 
Founder  of  Missions  in  the  consideration  of  these 
Resolutions;  and  the  Conference  shortly  afterwards 
adjourned. 

At  the  afternoon  sitting,  Dr  Bryan  proposed  the 
second  paragraph  should  read : — "That  this  Conference 
unanimously  holds  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments  as  the  supreme  standard  of  faith  and 
practice,    and   holds   firmly   the    primitive    Apostolic 

^  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  p.  6. 


32  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Faith;  further,  while  acknowledging  the  Apostles' 
Creed  and  the  Nicene  Creed  as  substantially  expressing 
the  fundamental  doctrines  of  the  Christian  Faith,  the 
Conference  does  not  adopt  any  Creed  as  a  basis  of 
Churchunity;yet,  in  view  of  our  knowledge  of,  etc.  ..." 

Bishop  Roots  approved,  and  suggested  the  addition 
of  the  words,  ''and  leaves  confessional  questions  to  the 
judgment  of  the  Chinese  Church  for  future  considera- 
tion," after  the  words  "  basis  of  Church  unity." 

*'  Dr  Bryan's  proposal  with  the  addition  proposed  by 
Bishop  Roots  was  thereupon  put  to  the  meeting  and 
carried  almost  unanimously.  The  result  was  received 
by  the  meeting  with  unbounded  enthusiasm,  and,  as 
one  man,  all  present  rose  to  their  feet  and  joined  in 
singing  the  Doxology."^ 

Resolution  III.  was  next  dealt  with: — "That  in 
planting  anew  the  Church  of  Christ  on  Chinese  soil,  we 
desire  to  plant  one  Holy  Catholic  Church  under  the 
sole  control  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  governed  by  the 
Word  of  the  Living  God,  and  led  by  His  guiding 
Spirit.  While  freely  communicating  to  this  Church  the 
knowledge  of  truth,  and  the  rich  historical  experience 
to  which  older  Churches  have  attained,  we  fully  recog- 
nise the  liberty  in  Christ  of  the  Chinese  Church  planted 
by  means  of  the  Missions  and  Churches  which  we 
represent ;  and  we  desire  to  commit  it  in  faith  and  hope 
to  the  continued  safe-keeping  of  its  Lord,  when  the  time 
shall  arrive,  which  we  eagerly  anticipate,  when  it  shall 
pass  beyond  our  guidance  and  control" ' 

Dr  Gibson  proposed  to  substitute  "Apostolic" 
for  "Catholic." 

Dr  Wherry  (A. P.M.,  Peking)  wished  to  omit  the 
word  "anew,"  to  which  Rev.  Arnold  Foster  objected, 
as  the  omission  would  be  tantamount  to  saying  that  the 
/Conference  did  not  regard  the  Nestorians  as  Christians. 

The  word  "  anew  "  was  deleted. 

^  CAifta  CenUnary  Missiotuay  Confertnce^  1907,  p.  7. 
^  IHd^  p.  8. 


"  UNUM  IN  CHRISTO ""  33 

Mr  Harmon  (E.B.M.,  Choutsun)  desired  to  retain 
the  word  "Catholic" 

Rev.  J.  B.  Ost  suggested  "Catholic  and  Apostolic/' 

Mr  Endicott  (Can.  Meth.,  Ch^ngtu)  thought 
"Christian  Church"  would  serve  the  purpose. 

Dr  Sheffield  (Tungchou)  advocated  "  Catholic." 

Rev.  R.  J.  Ware  (Shanghai)  desired  "  Holy  Catholic  " 
to  be  omitted,  and  was  supported  by  Rev.  R. 
Chambers  (Canton).  The  amendment  to  delete 
"Holy  Catholic"  was  carried.^ 

On  a  motion  to  strike  out  the  whole  of  the  second 
sentence,  Mr  Hoste  (C.I.M.)  thought  it  advisable  to 
qualify  the  general  statement  of  the  inherent  right  of 
liberty.  Their  right  to  liberty  must  depend  on  their 
ability  to  exercise  that  right. 

Mr  Clayton  (Wusueh)  was  not  prepared  to  accept 
the  final  sentence  until  he  heard  what  his  Home  Board 
had  to  say. 

Bishop  Bashford  greatly  deprecated  any  attempt  of 
Chinese  to  organise  a  Church  confined  to  the  Chinese 
Empire  Churches  should  be  world-wide  and  not 
national. 

Dr  Lewis  (M.E.M.,  Nanking)  contended  that  a 
Church  among  400,000,000  people  could  not  be 
expected  to  be  controlled  from  other  countries,  and 
that  perfect  liberty  was  inherent  in  the  Church  where- 
ever  established. 

The  motion  to  strike  out  the  second  sentence  was  lost. 

It  was  agreed  to  add  after  the  words  "which  we 
represent,"  the  words  "in  so  far  as  these  Churches  are 
by  maturity  of  Christian  character  and  experience  fitted 
to  exercise  it";  and  also  to  substitute  "Churches  in 
China"  for  "Chinese  Church,"  and  thus  amended. 
Resolution  HI.  was  carried.*  In  Resolution  IV.,  the 
Conference  undertook  to  submit  to  the  Home  Churches 
which  had  sent  them  to  China :  (a)  That  they  should 

^  CAina  Centenary  Missionary  Cottference^  I907)  P>  7* 
*  Jbid.^  p.  7. 

C 


34  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

sanction  "the  recognition  by  their  missionaries  of  the 
right  of  the  Chinese  Churches  to  organise  themselves 
as  independent  Churches,  in  accordance  with  their  own 
views  of  truth  and  duty,  suitable  arrangements  being 
made  for  due  representation  of  the  missionaries  on  their 
governing  bodies,  until  these  Churches  shall  be  in  a 
position  to  assume  full  responsibilities  of  self-support 
and  self-government." 

Adopted,  after  "Chinese  Churches"  had  been 
altered  to  "Churches  in  China,"  and  the  words  "as 
independent  Churches"  struck  out.^ 

(d)  "  That  they  should  carefully  abstain  from  claiming 
any  permanent  right  of  spiritual  or  administrative 
control  over  these  Chinese  Churches."  (As  adopted, 
"Chinese"  was  omitted.)* 

Bishop  Bashford,  having  moved  to  add  to  (6)  the 
words,  "but  that  we  desire  their  continuity  united  in 
co-ordinated  authority  with  those  branches  of  the 
Christian  Church  throughout  the  world  with  which 
they  find  themselves  most  fully  in  harmony  in  faith  and 
practice,"  and  the  amendment  having  been  lost,  asked 
what  they  expected  the  home  Churches  to  say  when  the 
Conference  voted  recommending  the  native  Churches 
to  break  away  from  them  ?  "  * 

Resolution  V. — thankful  for  the  declaration  of  our 
"essential  unity,"  desires  to  see  it  carried  into  effect  by 
union  of  the  Churches  "of  the  same  ecclesiastical 
order,"  without  regard  to  nationality,  etc.,  of  the  parent 
mission.  * 

Resolution  VI.  rejoices  to  know  that  various  sections 
have  already  taken  steps  in  this  direction ;  and  appoints 
a  Committee  to  act  for  the  Conference  in  furthering  the 
object,  also  sub-Committees. 

Resolution  VI  I.  hopes  these  sub-Committees  will 
unite  with  each  other  "in  the  closest  practicable  bonds 
of  Christian  fellowship." 

*  CAina  Centenary  Missionary  Conferencey  1907,  p.  8. 

*  Ibid^  p.  8.  8  Ibid,^  p.  8.  *  IbidLy  pp.  8-9. 


*1UNUM  IN  CHRISTO^  36 

Resolutions  VIII.  and  IX.  deal  with  various  matters ; 
and  Resolution  X.  requests  the  delegates  to  communicate 
the  Resolutions  to  their  home  Churches.^ 

On  Sunday,  sth  May,  Rev.  Lord  William  Cecil 
preached  at  Holy  Trinity  Cathedral,  Shanghai.  Taking 
for  his  text  the  words  :  "  That  they  all  may  be  one,"  he 
delivered  an  earnest  appeal  for  a  wider  toleration  in 
religious  opinion  than  had  been  advocated  even  at 
the  Conference.  He  looked  for  the  time  when  the 
Anglican  Church  would  heal  its  breaches,  not  only 
with  the  Nonconformist  bodies,  but  with  the  Greek 
and  Roman  Communions ;  and  he  pleaded  for  a  more 
patient  attempt  to  understand  the  position  of  those  two 
great  Churches,  and  urged  that  the  fact  that  the 
quarrel  with  Rome  was  four  hundred  years  old  was  a 
reason  why  there  should  be  a  reconciliation  if  possible. 
Humility,  love,  and  faith  were  the  three  necessary 
foundation  stones  on  which  to  build  up  anew  the  one 
Church,  catholic  and  universal.* 

The  ninth  session  of  the  Conference  met  on 
6th  May  to  consider  the  question  of  Comity  and 
Federation. 

The  Chairman  (Dr  A.  Smith)  having  appealed  to 
the  members  of  the  Conference  not  to  say  anything 
they  would  afterwards  regret : — 

Dr  W.  S.  Ament,  in  introducing  the  Resolutions, 
remarked  that  few  large  Conferences  had  ever  shown 
such  a  spirit  of  unanimity.  Certain  omissions  would 
be  noticed.  The  word  Protestant  was  not  used. 
Members  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  Churches  who 
came  Bible  in  hand  and  in  faith  in  Christ  would  not 
be  turned  away.  Nor  were  the  words  Nonconformist 
or  Dissenter  used»  neither  was  mentiqn  made  of  any 
creed,  or  the  proposals  of  the  Peking  Committee  of 
Union.' 

I.    "Resolved:   that  this  Conference  recommends 

^  China  Centenary  Missionary  Cmrference^  1907,  p.  9. 
*  Ibid,y  p.  40.  '  IHd,^  p.  41. 


36  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  formation  of  a  Federal  Union  under  the  title,  The 
China  Christian  Federation."  (Subsequently  amended 
to  "Christian  Confederation  of  China. 'V 

Dr  H.  Corbett  (Chefoo),  who  seconded,  mentioned 
the  progress  towards  union  in  America.  The  eyes  of 
the  world  were,  he  said,  on  this  Conference.  Other 
members  having  spoken,  the  Resolution  was  adopted 
by  a  large  majority  amid  loud  applause. 

Before  the  applause  had  subsided  Dr  Farnham  rose, 
and  denounced  the  passing  of  this  Resolution  as  a 
Jesuitical  scheme  from  the  beginning. 

Bishop  Roots  moved  that  the  Resolution  be 
reconsidered,  which  having  been  agreed  to,  Dr 
Farnham  then  said  that  he  was  heartily  in  favour 
of  union,  as  he  believed  all  present  were.  .  .  . 
What  had  been  discussed  was  one  thing;  what  had 
been  accomplished  was  another.  With  but  little  con- 
sideration the  Conference  passed  within  the  gate  so 
alluringly  opened  by  Dr  Ament  much  as  a  flock  of 
sheep  being  led  to  the  slaughter.  (No!  No!)  When 
they  had  once  passed  through  they  would  have  hand- 
cuffs put  on,  and  their  feet  would  be  fettered.  (Loud 
murmurs  of  dissent.)  The  Resolution  would  certainly 
not  be  carried  unanimously,  if  he  was  the  only  one  who 
dissented  from  it.  When  he  spoke  against  unity  at  the 
first  session  his  remarks  were  not  reported.  He  had 
moved  that  the  Resolution  on  unity  be  stricken  out. 
That  motion  was  not  noticed.  It  was  planned  from 
the  beginning  that  the  scheme  for  union  should  go 
through.  It  was  sprung  upon  them.  (No !  No !  Cries 
for  the  question.)  Dr  Ament  had  given  them  a  chance 
to  read  behind  the  Resolutions.  He  had  alluded  to  Dr 
Cochrane,  who  had  undertaken  openly  what  was  now 
being  undertaken  under handedly.  (Loud  expressions 
of  dissent.)* 

Dr  Garrett's  proposal  that  speakers  on  these  Resolu- 

'  China  Centenary  Missionary  Coftference^  1907,  p.  43. 
'  Ibid^  p.  41. 


"UNUM  IN  CHRISTO"  37 

tions  be  limited  to  three  minutes  having  been  carried, 
Bishop  Roots,  who  was  loudly  applauded,  thought 
they  had  arrived  at  the  point  where  they  needed  to 
pause  for  a  moment  and  consider  before  they  took 
irrevocable  action.  He  was  sure  they  met  in  the  spirit 
pleaded  for  by  their  Chairman.  They  were  conscious 
of  their  responsibilities,  and  determined  that,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  they  would  not  revile  one  another. 
(Loud  applause.)  It  was  manifestly  the  desire  of  this 
Conference  that  they  should  deal  fairly  with  one 
another.  (Applause.)  If  they  once  harboured  in 
their  thoughts  the  notion  that  anyone  was  dealing 
with  anyone  else  in  a  Jesuitical  manner  they  were  lost. 
(Applause.)  He  therefore  pleaded  that  before  this 
first  Resolution  was  passed,  those  who  did  not  agree 
with  it  should  be  allowed  to  state  their  reasons. 
They  would  find  the  Conference  reasonable  enough. 
(Applause.) 

Rev.  Evan  Morgan  asked  for  definitions  of  terms. 
What  was  meant  by  Federation  and  Comity  ?  by  free 
and  elastic  federation  ?  by  saying  that  in  local  Councils 
everyone  could  say  just  what  he  liked ;  everyone  could 
do  what  he  liked?  He  moved  an  amendment  recom- 
mending consideration  of  advisability  of  forming  local 
(x>uncils. 

Rev.  A.  L.  Warnshuis  (American  Dutch  Ref.) 
moved  a  substitute  resolution  urging  local  union 
"with  similar  organisations  in  the  same  province  or 
locality." 

Rev.  W.  N.  Bitton  (L.M.S.,  Shanghai)  pointed  out 
that  if  the  last  amendment  was  accepted,  the  whole 
idea  of  the  Conference  was  done  away  with,  and  the 
whole  idea  of  the  Christian  Church  went  for  nothing. 

Dr  R.  T.  Bryan  suggested  that  the  Resolutions  be 
discussed  as  a  whole. 

Dr  Ohlinger  said  the  union  they  had  had  for  fifty 
years  in  Foochow  was  all  he  wished  to  see.  He 
thought  they  should   avoid   talking  about   Christian 


38  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Union,  as  they  had  refused  to  recognise  "a  Church 
which  was  organised  yesterday,  and  to-day  counts  two 
members,"  simply  because  it  was  small.  (Shouts  of 
"explain"  and  "name.")  He  was  heartily  in  favour 
of  toning  down  the  Christian  dividing  lines,  but  where 
the  spirit  of  union  existed,  these  lines  interfered  with 
the  work  as  much  as  the  lines  of  latitude  and  longitude 
did  with  navigation.^ 

Rev.  John  Archibald  (N.B.S.,  Scot.,  Hankow) 
spoke  of  various  unions,  societies,  etc.,  started  in 
Hankow,  and  of  their  accomplishing  little.  He  did 
not  know  how  to  vote,  because  he  was  not  sure  how 
this  scheme  would  work.  He  was  very  much  afraid 
that  in  this  Conference  they  had  piled  up  Resolutions 
and  Committees,  so  that  the  leading  men  would  have 
nothing  else  to  do  but  sit  on  Committees  all  their  days. 

Dr  J.  Lowrie  moved  that  the  Conference  suspend  all 
rules,  and  consider  the  whole  subject  in  three-minute 
speeches  until  3  p.m. 

This  was  carried. 

Rev.  D.  E.  Hoste(C.I.M.,  Shanghai)  thought  that 
all  should  agree  that  the  essence  of  Federation  for  a 
long  time  to  come  would  be  found  in  local  missionaries 
cultivating  brotherly  intercourse,  and  seeking  occasions 
when  they  could  get  to  know  and  help  each  other.  It 
was  most  important  at  the  present  time  to  give 
expression  to  the  unanimous  general  longing  that 
they  should  have  of  exchanging  general  thought, 
without  binding  each  other.  The  Councils,  whether 
national  or  provincial,  had  no  executive  power. 

Dr  Gilbert  Reid  said  he  had  been  in  favour  of 
organic  union,  but  he  had  come  to  realise  that  that  was 
well-nigh  impossible,  therefore  if  they  could  not  have 
union,  then  let  them  take  something  else  which  was  a 
preliminary,  and  might  be  helpful  and  lead  up  to  that 
high  ideal.* 

^  China  Centenary  Missionary  Confer ence^  1907,  p.  41. 
*  Ibid.^  p.  41. 


"UNUM  IN  CHHISTO'^  39 

Rev.  E.  J.  Cooper  (C.I.M.,  Hungtung)  was  of 
opinion  that  there  was  no  difficulty  in  formingr  a 
federation,  but  conceived  that  there  would  be  difficulties 
when  they  got  down  to  local  Churches.  He  asked  for 
sympathy  and  determination  to  overcome  them. 

Rev.  H.  V.  Noyes  (A. P.M.,  Canton)  moved  to 
strike  out  in  Resolution  II.,  the  reference  to  "a  United 
Christian  Church  in  China,"  and  in  Resolution  VII. 
that  to  "one  Christian  Church  for  China."  It  was  for 
the  Chinese  Church  itself  to  say  whether  there  should 
be  one  Church  in  China. 

After  some  further  discussion,  Dr  Gibson  moved 
that  the  vote  to  debate  till  3  o'clock  be  reconsidered, 
which  having  been  carried,  he  then  moved  that  the  vote 
on  Resolution  I.  be  taken  at  1 1.55  a.m.  This  was  also 
carried. 

Rev.  E.  Thomson  (C. M.S.,  Taichow)  appealed  to 
the  Conference  to  "be  careful."^ 

Eventually,  Rev.  S.  Couling  (Eng.  B.  M.,  Weihsein) 
said  that  he  voted  against  this  Resolution  I.,  because  he 
represented  many  missionaries,  who  were  not  at  that 
Conference,  who  felt  that  this  matter  had  been  very 
much  rushed.  He  did  not  say  it  had  been  rushed  in 
the  Conference  (No!  No!).  It  had  been  called  a 
popular  stampede  for  union.  He  objected  to  stampedes. 
He  was  also  against  it,  because  the  whole  thing  was 
altogether  too  mechanical.  It  was  the  natural  growth 
that  they  should  follow.  If  the  Perfervidum  ingenium 
had  been  the  Chinese  instead  of  the  foreigner,  it  would 
have  been  better.  In  conclusion,  he  remarked  that  too 
many  resolutions  had  gone  out  to  the  world,  as  being 
unanimously  carried,  because  quite  a  respectable  portion 
of  members  of  the  Conference  had  been  too  timid  to 
vote  against  them. 

Resolution  I.  was  then  put  and  carried,  less  than  a 
dozen  hands  being  raised  against  it.' 

^  China  CenUnary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  p.  42, 
-  IHd.^  p.  42. 


40  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

At  the  afternoon  session  Resolution  11.  was  brought 
up  for  consideration: — **That  the  objects  of  this 
Federation  shall  be  to  foster  and  encourage  the  senti- 
ment and  practice  of  union,  to  organise  union  effort 
whenever  and  wherever  possible,  and  to  work  for  the 
ultimate  accomplishment  of  our  ideal — sl  United 
Christian  Church  in  China."  ^ 

Bishop  Roots,  who  seconded,  remarked  that  the 
Resolution  did  not  state  how  federation  in  China  was  to 
be  accomplished,  but  rather  set  the  ideal  before  them ; 
in  striving  for  which,  they  had  no  adjustment  of  creeds 
or  Church  government  in  view.  The  federation 
proposed  would  help  them  to  prosecute  that  work 
which  could  be  better  done  by  union.  He  desired 
liberty  that  would  shackle  no  man's  conscience,  and  the 
union  that  brought  strength. 

Dr  Mateer  proposed,  as  an  amendment  which  would 
ensure  a  unanimous  vote,  to  strike  out  the  words  after 
** wherever  possible,"  in  order  to  insert  in  their  stead 
"and,  in  general,  to  seek  through  all  such  effort  to 
hasten  the  ultimate  establishment  of  the  Kingdom  of 
God  in  China." 

And,  thus  amended.  Resolution  II.  was  carried.* 

The  remaining  six  Resolutions  dealt  with  the 
organisation  of  the  Federation,  and,  with  more  or  less 
amendment,  were  adopted.  In  Resolution  VII.,  the 
concluding  sentence  of  clause  {a)  which,  as  originally 
proposed,  read  **for  the  furtherance  of  the  ideal  of  one 
Christian  Church  for  China,"  was  amended  to  read 
"for  the  furtherance  of  Christian  Unity." * 

The  concluding  session  of  the  Conference  was  held 
on  7th  May.  A  Resolution  of  thanks  to  the  Municipal 
Council  for  the  loan  of  the  Town  Hall ;  to  the  Secre- 
taries and  Officers  of  the  Y.M.C.A.  for  their  work 
in  connection  with  the  finishing  of  the  Martyrs' 
Memorial   Hall;  to  Rev.  J.  A.  Heale  for  preparing 

^  C^na  Centenary  Missumary  Corrference^  1907,  p.  45. 
'  IHd^  p.  42.  ^  Ibid.^  p.  44. 


"UNUM  IN  CHRISTO**  41 

the  list  of  delegates ;  to  the  ladies»  gentlemen,  and 
ushers  who  had  assisted  in  the  work  of  the  Conference ; 
to  Rev.  N.  Bitton,  the  Organist  and  Choir  of 
Union  Church;  the  Dean  and  Organist  of  the 
Cathedral,  the  Dean  and  Mr  Darwent  (for  the  concert 
they  had  got  up);  to  the  steamship  companies  for 
special  terms;  to  the  Chinese  Postal  Authorities;  to 
the  Shanghai  Press  for  its  liberal  notices  of,  and  friend- 
ship to,  the  Conference ;  to  the  visitors  and  represen- 
tatives from  home  Churches ;  to  the  Commercial  Press 
and  the  International  Institute;  the  Laymen's  move- 
ment representatives ;  the  Chairmen  and  Secretaries  of 
the  Conference ;  to  the  generous  hosts  of  Shanghai ; 
and  to  Almighty  God  for  His  mercy  and  guidance 
throughout  their  deliberations ;  was  adopted,  after  the 
suggestion  of  Mr  Watson  (Changsha),  that  it  should 
be  broken  up  into  separate  resolutions,  as  he  objected 
to  giving  a  vote  of  thanks  to  the  steamship  companies, 
etc,  and  to  the  Almighty  in  the  same  paragraph,  had 
been  agreed  to. 

The  Conference  then  adjourned,  after  prayer  by  Dr 
Arthur  Smith  and  the  singing  of  the  Doxology.^ 

>  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  p.  47. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  TRANSLATION   OF   HOLY   SCRIPTURE 

Among  the  "emphatic  lessons"  taught  by  the  "whole 
experience  of  the  [nineteenth]  century,"  Mr  Pierson 
notes  the  following  two: — 

"  I.  God  has  set  special  honour  upon  his  own 
Gospel.  Where  it  has  been  most  simply  and  purely 
preached,  the  largest  fruits  have  ultimately  followed. 
2.  The  translation,  publication,  and  public  and  pri- 
vate reading  of  the  Scriptures  have  been  particularly 
owned  by  the  Spirit."^  The  study  of  Holy  Scripture 
seems,  moreover,  to  have  been  officially  recommended 
in  China  by  no  less  a  personage  than  the  American 
Minister  in  Peking  who,  defending  his  missionary 
compatriots  against  the  aspersions  of  the  Missionary 
Circular  of  1871,  desired  that  the  Prince  of  Kungand 
his  colleagues  in  the  Tsun^li  Yamin  "would  look 
into  the  Holy  Scriptures,  where  may  be  found  those 
principles  and  doctrines,  under  whose  influence  foreign 
countries  have  become  great  and  powerful."* 

Mr  Broomhall  tells  us  that  "in  nothing  are  the 
Protestant  missions  more  distinguished  from  the  Roman 
Catholic  missions  than  in  the  endeavour  to  give  the 
Word  of  God  to  the  peoples  of  the  earth  in  their  own 
languages.  The  desire  of  every  Protestant  missionary 
is  that  the  miracle  of  Pentecost  may  be  repeated,  not 

*  The  Modem  Missionary  Century^  1901,  Arthur  T.  Pierson,  p.  293. 
'  China  and  Religion^  1905,  Professor  Edward  Harper  Parker,  p. 
223. 

4S 


THE  TRANSLATION  OF  HOLY  SCRIPTURE     43 

only  in  the  Word  of  Life  being  preached,  but  also 
printed,  so  that  every  man  may  both  hear  and  read  it 
in  his  mother  tongue."^ 

That  the  Catholic  Church  is,  and  always  has  been, 
much  more  guarded  in  the  distribution  of  the  sacred 
Scriptures,  and  has  never  sought  to  convert  the  heathen 
in  the  first  instance  by  them  may  readily  be  granted. 
And  one  of  Her  reasons  for  such  reticence  was  stated 
on  his  own  behalf  by  the  late  Dr  Duff — a  Protestant 
missionary  in  China — as  far  back  as  1859: — "We 
cannot  be  too  earnest  in  reminding  our  Christian 
friends  and  supporters  at  home  that  the  distribution 
of  the  Scriptures  in  the  first  instance  is  not  the  means 
for  evangelising  the  heathen  which,  either  the  Word 
of  God,  Apostolic  usage,  or  the  experience  of  modern 
missionaries  does  at  all  commend.  No !  the  voice,  the 
living  voice  pouring  forth  God's  truths  in  articulate 
utterance  from  a  glowing  regenerate  heart  is  the  real 
ploughshare  for  turning  up  the  roughened  surface  of  a 
rampant  heathenism,  and  preparing  a  new  soil  for  the 
ready  reception  of  the  written  word."* 

Another  reason  will  be  abundantly  plain  later  why 
She  has  never  distributed  the  Scriptures  broadcast. 
At  present  all  that  need  be  said  of  the  Bible,  as  far  as 
the  Catholic  Church  is  concerned,  is  that  its  translation 
into  Chinese  seems  to  have  commenced  with  Her  entry 
into  China.  Thus  we  learn  on  the  authority  of  Mr 
Kesson,  that  there  are  two  letters  of  Father  John  de 
Monte  Corvino — the  first  Catholic  missionary  in  China, 
about  the  year  1 300 — still  extant,  one  of  which  says : — 
"  I  am  now  become  old  and  grey,  more  through  toil  and 
labour  than  through  age,  since  I  am  only  58  years.  I 
know  the  Tartar  language  and  letters  sufficiently,  and 
have  already  translated  into  it  the  New  Testament  and 
Psalms,  which  I  had  then  copied  over  in  their  fairest 

^  The  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A.,  p.  371. 
*  Glimpses  of  Missionary   Work  in  China^  i860,  in  section  by  C. 
Doi^las,  pu  63. 


44  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

characters."  *  In  1696,  as  we  learn  from  Mr  Alexander 
Wylie,  Dr  J.  F.  Gemelli-Careri  mentions  transla- 
tion of  the  works  of  St  Thomas,  and  also  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  At  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  the  New  Testament  in  Chinese  was  in  use  in 
Father  Ripa's  Chinese  College  at  Naples.  Morrison 
was  "distinctly  told  by  missionaries  and  converts  of  the 
Church  of  Rome,  that  the  Old  and  New  Testaments 
had  been  translated,  and  were  in  use  among  the 
Christians  in  Peking,  and  from  one  of  the  body  he 
procured  a  translation  of  the  Gospels,  made  by  a 
missionary  early  in  the  century.  In  the  British 
Museum  a  MS.  volume  in  Chinese,  containing  a 
Harmony  of  the  Gospels,  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  and  all 
the  Epistles  of  St  Paul  excepting  that  to  the  Hebrews, 
of  which  there  is  only  the  first  chapter,"  is  to  be  found** 
Of  this  volume  Dr  Campbell  Gibson  informs  us  that 
''  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  first  of  these  versions 
known  to  us  was  made  though  not  printed  by  some 
unknown  Catholic  missionary,  at  least  as  early  as  the 
seventeenth  century.  A  copy  of  the  work,  made  in 
Canton,  was  presented  by  a  British  merchant  to  Sir 
Hans  Sloane,  and  afterwards  deposited  in  the  British 
Museum.  There  it  attracted  the  attention  of  Robert 
Morrison  on  his  appointment  in  1807,  as  the  first 
Protestant  missionary  to  China.  He  began  by  making 
a  copy  of  it  with  his  own  hands,  and  afterwards  pro- 
cured the  assistance  of  a  Chinaman  whom  he  found 
in  London.  This  transcript  he  carried  with  him  to 
Canton,  and  used  as  the  basis  of  his  work  in  beginning 
to  translate  the  New  Testament."  * 

We  now  have  to  follow  the  history  of  the  Protestant 
translations  as  summarised  by  Mr  Marshall  Broomhall. 
It  appears  that  the  Bible  has  been  rendered  into  no  less 

^  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1854,  John  Kesson,  p.  78. 
^  Chinese  Researches^  1897,  Alexander  Wylie,  pp.  95-6. 
'  Mission  Problems  and  Mission   Methods  in  S,   Chtna^   1901,  J. 
Campbell  Gibson,  M.A^  D.D.,  p.  207.    . 


THB  TRANSLATION  OF  HOLY  SCRlPTUBE     46 

than  27  versions  to  suit  the  different  dialects  of  China 
— 24  of  which  belong  to  "China  proper."  We  will 
first  take  the  High  Wen4i  versions.  High  Wen-lU 
it  may  be  explained,  is  the  Chinese  classical  language, 
not  spoken,  but  understood  by  all  literati;  and  forms 
the  only  style  allowed  in  examinations. 

Morrison,  with  the  aid  of  the  New  Testament  from 
the  British  Museum,  completed  the  New  Testament  in 
1 814.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  British  and 
Foreign  Bible  Society,  he  presented  his  Bible,  towards 
which  the  Society  had  given  ;^io,ooo,  in  addition  to 
what  they  had  given  to  Marshman.  At  the  annual  meet- 
ing of  the  same  Society,  in  May  1823,  Mr  John 
Marshman  presented  a  complete  copy  of  the  Bible 
in  Chinese,  all  printed  with  movable  type.  This  had 
been  made  at  Serampore. 

Dr  Medhurst  revised  the  New  Testament,  and  it 
was  lithographed  in  Bavaria  in  1837.  Dr  Gutzlaff  did 
the  same  for  the  Old  Testament ;  and  this  version  was 
the  one  republished  by  the  Taiping  rebels  in  1853. 
GutzlafTs  version  ran  through  ten  editions. 

In  1843,  ^  meeting  of  British  and  American  mission- 
aries decided  to  revise  the  New  Testament  again. 
And  now  the  "Term"  controversy  broke  out,  the 
issue  of  which  was  "  that  the  words  *  God '  and  *  Spirit ' 
were  left  untranslated,  and  the  four  Gospels  were 
printed  at  Shanghai  in  1850,  and  the  whole  New 
Testament  in  1852."^  Of  this  revision  Dr  Wells 
Williams  supplies  the  following  details :  ''  The  greatest 
harmony  existed  at  this  meeting,  and  the  books 
of  the  New  Testament  were  distributed  among  the 
missionaries  of  the  several  stations  without  regard  to 
denomination.  Some  discussion  arose  as  to  the  best 
word  for  baptism,  for  all  agreed  that  it  could  not  well  be 
transliterated.  The  question  was  referred  to  a  com- 
mittee, which*  finding  itself  unable  to  agree  upon  a  term, 
recommended  that  in  the  proposed  version  this  word 

1  Tke  Chinese  Empire^  19079  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A.,  p.  381. 


46  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

should  be  left  for  each  party  to  adopt  which  it  liked. 
The  term  si  It,  which  had  been  in  use  to  denote  this 
rite  since  the  days  of  Ricci,  by  Romanists  of  all 
opinions,  had  been  taken  by  Morrison  and  Medhurst, 
and  by  those  associated  with  them.  Marshman 
preferred  another  word,  tsan,  which  was  so  unusual 
that  it  would  almost  always  require  explanation ;  and  in 
fact  could  only  be  fully  explained  by  the  ceremony 
itself.  Some  of  the  American  Baptist  missionaries 
have  taken  Marshman's  term,  and  others  have  pro- 
posed a  third  one,  yuh.  Their  joint  action  with  their 
brethren  in  regard  to  a  common  version  was  afterward 
repudiated  by  the  societies  in  the  United  States,  which 
directed  them  to  prepare  separate  translations."  ^ 

Upon  the  Old  Testament,  a  division  resulted  in  two 
separate  versions.  That  of  the  London  Missionary 
Society  was  published  by  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society  in  1854;  and  in  the  following  year  the  whole 
version  known  as  the  **  Delegates' "  version  was  issued. 
The  other  was  published  by  the  American  Bible 
Society  (N.T.  1859,  O.T.  1862-3),  the  word  Shen 
being  used  for  God,  and  Sheng-linsr  for  Spirit.* 

Concerning  the  Delegates*  version,  Rev.  Dr  Gibson 
remarked: — ** There  was  then  no  Christian  Church  in 
China,  and  the  thought  always  present  to  a  translator  s 
mind  was,  necessarily  and  rightly,  how  to  make  the 
great  facts  of  Christianity,  and  the  broader  outlines  of 
Christian  thought  most  accessible  to  a  non-Christian 
reader.  To  disarm  prejudice  and  bespeak  a  favourable 
hearing,  it  was  necessary  further  to  cultivate  refinement 
of  style,  and  the  peculiarities  of  Christian  teaching  were 
sometimes  sacrificed  to  the  requirements  of  elegant 
style  or  of  familiar  idiom.  It  is  to  this  happy  meeting 
of  these  requirements  that  the  'Delegates"  version 
owes  its  wide  popularity  among  us.     Its  style,  from  the 

1  The  Middle  Kingdom  (revised  edition),  1883,  S.  Wells  Williams, 
LL.D.,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  363-4. 

^  The  Chinese  Empire,  p.  382. 


THE  TRANSLATION  OF  HOLY  SCRIPTURE      47 

Chinese  point  of  view,  is  faultless,  its  narrative  portions 
are  clear  and  pleasant  to  read ;  the  Psalms  and  the 
Prophecies  are  appropriately  rendered,  if  not  accurately 
translated,  in  the  measured  and  elegant  rhythm  which 
lends  itself  naturally  to  the  expression  of  poetical 
thougrht;  while  the  profounder  discussions  of  the 
Epistles  are  rendered  with  a  genersil  faithfulness  which 
yet  retains  a  Chinese  cast  of  expression,  and  avoids 
embarrassingr  an  uninstructed  reader  with  the  subtler 
profundities  of  Christian  theology  and  ethics.  These 
are  high  merits,  and  have  rendered  this  version  a  valu- 
able instrument  for  the  evangelisation  of  China.  In  it 
we  have  a  version  which  can  stand  on  its  own  merits  as 
a  work  of  scholarship,  and  one  is  not  afraid  to  put  it  into 
the  hands  of  the  most  prejudiced. 

"  But  for  the  second  purpose  of  a  translation  [to 
supply  Christian  readers  with  as  faithful  a  text  as  can 
possibly  be  given]  these  high  excellences  assume  a 
different  aspect,  and  some  of  them  become  positive 
defects. 

"On  the  one  hand,  the  style  of  this  version,  though 
admirable  for  good  scholars,  is  too  high  for  even  the 
more  educated  part  of  the  membership  of  the  Church. 
On  the  other,  its  renderings,  though  faithful  to  the  main 
lines  of  Christian  teaching,  are  not  so  minutely  exact  as 
to  lend  themselves  to  detailed  exegetical  and  expository 
treatment  in  the  hands  of  Christian  students  and 
preachers. 

"  These  are  grave  defects,  not  reflecting  any  discredit 
on  the  original  translators,  who  had  a  different  object  in 
view,  but  grave  enough  to  justify  and  explain  the  wide- 
spread feeling  now  arising  [1890]  that  for  the  use  of  the 
Christian  Church  a  better  translation  is  now  required, 
one  at  once  more  simple  and  more  exact."  ^ 

"A  missionary  says  that  he  is  an  enthusiastic 
admirer  of  the  Delegates'  version,  and  yet  feels  com- 
pelled to  confess  that  its  circulation  is  a  waste  of  time, 

1  Records  of  Shanghai  Conferenct^  1890,  pp.  62-3. 


48  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

labour,  and  money.  Speakingr  of  Fuh-Kien,  he  says  : — 
*  In  a  province  like  this,  where  not  i  per  cent,  of  the 
population  can  make  any  intelligrent  use  of  a  book  in 
Wen4i,  the  high  style  of  the  Delegates'  version  is 
absolutely  beyond  the  literary  powers  of  the  minority  of 
the  I  per  cent.' "  ^ 

In  1872,  a  committee  was  appointed  "to  conserve  the 
text  of  the  Delegates'  version."- 

In  1839,  the  Baptists,  who  had  used  Marshman's 
version,  commenced  a  new  one,  of  which  the  whole  was 
completed  in  1868. 

At  the  General  Missionary  Conference  of  1890  it 
was  decided  to  publish  a  Union  version  in  High  Wen4t. 
The  translators  were,  two  from  the  London  Missionary 
Society ;  two  from  the  American  Board  and  American 
Presbyterian  ;  and  one  Basel  missionary.  "It  was  thus 
hoped  to  obtain  a  version  equally  acceptable  to  all,  and 
expenses  were  to  be  equally  shared  by  the  three  great 
Bible  Societies."    This  was  still  in  progress  in  1907.' 

Of  High  Wen-It  as  a  medium  for  the  translation  of 
the  Holy  Scriptures,  Dr  Gibson,  in  his  Review  of 
Colloquial  Versions,  said  at  the  same  Conference  of 
1890: — "  But  there  is  now  a  frank  and  general,  if  not 
yet  quite  unanimous,  recognition  that  a  high-class 
Wen-lh  such  as  we  in  the  South  have  used  hitherto, 
has  failed,  and  will  fail  to  reach  the  bulk  of  our 
Christian  people.  Dr  Blodget  writes,  '  I  fear  lest  in 
time  past  the  effort  has  not  been  faithfully  made  to 
bring  the  written  language  to  its  most  simple  form  for 
our  religious  books.' 

"  It  is  a  great  matter  that  this  fact  has  become  so 
generally  recognised.  Brethren  in  Mandarin-speaking 
regions,  who  are  accustomed  to  use  the  '  Mandarin 
colloquial '  versions,  are  perhaps  not  sufficiently  aware 
how  absolutely  we  in  the  South  have  depended  hitherto 

*  Gnffiihjohtiy  1906,  R.  Wardlaw  Thompson,  p*  439. 
'  The  Chinese  Empire^  p.  382. 
'  Ibid.^  p.  382. 


THE  TRANSLATION  OF  HOLY  SCRffTURE     49 

on  the  JVen^/z  versions.  It  is  from  them  the  extempore 
translations  heard  in  our  churches  are  made,  and  those 
who  are  not  constantly  hearing  them  read  in  this  way 
cannot  appreciate  how  poor,  confused,  and  inaccurate 
these  translations  often  are.  I  am  not  speakingf  of 
persons  who  cannot  read,  but  of  preachers,  catechists, 
students,  and  others.  I  doubt  whether  there  is  any 
missionary  who  could  stand  up  and  read  at  sight,  from 
any  part  of  the  Wen-li  Bible  ad  aperturam,  a  good 
translation  into  his  vernacular.  I  think  no  one  ought 
to  undertake  it.  To  give  a  good  oral  version  in 
vernacular  requires  not  only  a  good  general  knowledge 
of  character,  and  of  the  syntax  and  structure  of  the 
Book  language,  and  a  nice  discrimination  of  the  effect 
of  the  particles  and  their  relation  to  the  context,  but 
also  a  ready  command  of  good  vernacular,  and  ability 
to  give,  not  merely  a  bald  or  loose  paraphrase,  but  an 
apt  and  idiomatic  version,  neither  slipshod  nor 
redundant,  in  sentences  not  too  long  to  hold  the 
hearer's  attention,  and  not  so  short  as  to  lose  the 
thread  of  the  meaning.  It  requires,  too,  a  certain 
boldness  and  tact  to  know  how  to  take  a  firm  hold  of 
the  character  sentence  as  a  whole,  sometimes  following 
its  order,  sometimes  turning  it  end  for  end,  sometimes 
bringing  together  characters  widely  separated  in  the  book 
text,  sometimes  breaking  up  compact  phrases  in  the 
text  into  separate  clauses,  so  as  to  secure  the  life 
and  freedom  of  the  vernacular. 

'^  When  it  is  remembered  that  all  this  has  to  be  done 
in  interpreting  to  men  that  Word  of  God  which  we 
have  no  right  to  add  to,  to  take  from,  or  to  change, 
surely  one  may  well  say  that  no  one  should  dare  to 
attempt  it  extempore.  Even  natives  who  are  fairly 
good  scholars,  fail  greatly  in  this  most  difficult  task. 
Their  translations  are  sometimes  loose,  sometimes 
inconsecutive,  often  stiff  and  obscure,  frequently 
incorrect,  and  sometimes  wholly  meaningless. 

"  I  have  frequently  noted  such  transitions  from  the 

P 


60  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

lips  of  native  preachers,  and  on  consulting  them  after- 
wards found  mistakes  such  as  these : — 

"  I.  Sentences  uttered  which  could  not  be  under- 
stood, because  they  belonged  to  the  Book-lansfuagre  and 
were  unknown  in  vernacular. 

"  2.  Sentences  which,  thougrh  good  vernacular,  were 
of  a  different  meaning  from  the  text  in  hand. 

"  3.  Sentences  in  which  all  the  several  words  belonged 
to  the  vernacular,  but  which,  as  spoken,  contained  no 
meaning  at  all,  the  words  having  been  arranged 
according  to  the  order  of  the  character  text. 

"  Of  these  and  others  I  could  give  instances,  but  to 
those  not  familiar  with  the  vernacular  in  question  the 
point  of  the  illustration  would  not  be  apparent 

"  I  have  dwelt  upon  this  point  to  show  brethren  who 
habitually  use  in  public  reading  the  Mandarin  versions, 
how  urgent  for  us  in  the  Southern  dialects  is  the  need 
of  something  better  than  the  JVen-/t"^ 

We  now  come  to  translations  in  Easy  JVen-/t, 
which  is  generally  employed  in  popular  literature  and 
newspapers. 

The  Psalms  were  published  in  1882,  and  the  New 
Testament  in  1889. 

In  1885,  Dr  Griffith  John's  version  was  published  by 
the  National  Bible  Society  of  Scotland,  and  revised  in 
1889 — the  Old  Testament  as  far  as  the  Song  of 
Solomon. 

In  1890,  a  Union  version  in  Easy  Wen4t  was 
decided  on,  under  the  same  conditions  as  the  High 
Wen4i  version.  A  tentative  edition  was  finished  of 
the  New  Testament  by  1900,  but  was  delayed  till  1907, 
during  which  time  it  has  been  re-examined  and 
corrected  no  less  than  three  times,  "the  results  of 
which  now  await  the  completion  of  the  other  Union 
versions,  that  all  may  be  harmonised  together."  * 

Meanwhile,    Bishop   Schereschewsky  completed   a 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1S90,  pp.  68-9. 
*  The  Chinese  Empire^  p.  384. 


THE  TRANSLATION  OF  HOLY  SCRIPTURE      51 

translation  of  the  Old  Testament  into  Easy  Wen4i ; 
but  his  style  being  higher  than  others,  he  undertook 
the  New  Testament,  which  he  completed  in  1895.  The 
New  Testament  was  printed  in  Japan  in  1898,  and 
eventually  the  whole  Bible  by  the  American  Bible 
Society  in  1902. 

Of  the  Northern  or  Pekingr  Mandarin,  which  is 
spoken  by  the  official  class,  and,  with  provincialisms, 
by  about  three-quarters  of  China  proper,  the  earliest 
version  known  is  by  Fr.  C.  P.  Louis  de  Poirot,  S.J-, 
( 1 735-1814),  now  preserved  at  Sicawei.  Translations 
and  Revisions  from  1864  to  1899,  includingr  Union 
version  in  Mandarin  proposed  in  1890. 

In  the  Southern,  or  Nanking  Mandarin,  an  edition 
was  published  by  the  British  and  Foreigrn  Bible  Society 
in  1856-7  which,  beingr  unsuccessful,  was  replaced  by 
Peking-  Mandarin. 

Romanised  editions  {ji.e.  in  Roman  letters)  were 
commenced  by  the  China  Inland  Mission  at  Chinkiangr 
in  1869,  and  the  New  Testament  was  published  by  the 
British  and  Foreigrn  Bible  Society  in  1888. 

The  American  Bible  Society  published  St  John 
according  to  Sir  Thomas  Wade's  System  of  Romanisa- 
tion  in  1895- 

The  four  Gospels,  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  and  some 
Epistles,  in  "  Murray's  Numeral  Systeih  "  appeared  in 
1896. 

The  ''Standard  System  of  Romanisation "  was 
commenced  in  1904,  and  the  Gospels  of  St  Matthew, 
St  Mark,  and  St  Luke  were  published  by  the  British 
and  Foreign  Bible  Society  in  1905. 

Concerning  the  "  Term  "  Question  as  it  affects  Holy 
Scripture,  we  learn  that  "  the  presence  of  both  European 
and  American  missionaries  on  the  Committee  of  trans- 
lation led  to  an  effort  to  obtain  uniformity  by  way  of 
compromise.  Dr  Williamson  proposed  that  the  Roman 
Catholic  terms  should  be  adopted,  as  he  found  them 
widely  understood,   and  in   1867  this  was  approved. 


62  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Subsequently,  permission  was  given  also  for  an  edition 
with  Skangti.  The  edition  of  the  New  Testament  with 
the  Roman  Catholic  term  Tien-chu  (Heavenly  Lord) 
was  completed  by  1870 ;  the  one  with  5^;^/^  (Supreme 
Ruler)  being  published  somewhat  later  in  the  same 
year.  Another  edition  with  the  Chen-Shen  (True 
Spirit)  was  issued  by  the  American  Bible  Society  at  the 
same  time,"^ 

Besides  the  above,  in  1890,  there  appear  to  have 
been  extant,  translations  of  the  Bible,  or  parts  of  it, 
either  in  Character,  Roman  Letter,  or  both,  in  dialects 
of  Soochow,  Shanghai,  Ningpo,  Kinwha,  Wenchow, 
Taichow,  Foochow,  Amoy,  Swatow,  Hakka,  Canton, 
and  Hainan.^ 

Concerning  the  Foochow  version.  Rev.  Dr  Camp- 
bell Gibson  remarked  that : — "  The  character  editions  of 
the  Foochow  version  are  chiefly  remarkable  to  an 
outsider  for  the  extraordinary  freedom  with  which 
characters  are  used  to  represent  sounds,  without  any 
regard  to  their  real  meaning,  and  that,  often,  without 
any  indication  of  this  phonetic  use."  Having  given 
examples,  the  reverend  gentleman  continued :  "Probably 
the  best  that  can  be  done  has  been  done,  and  I  give 
these  few  illustrations  to  show  what  confusion  results 
from  using  Chinese  characters  to  represent  some  of  the 
vernaculars."' 

Of  the  Hakka  New  Testament  published  in  Char- 
acter in  1883,  the  same  authority  tells  us  that: — "It 
appears  to  follow  the  Romanised  editions,  but  is  not 
rigidly  conformed  to  them.  It  is  also  disfigured 
by  the  use  of  characters  to  represent  sounds  without 
regard  to  meaning,  such  as  the  following."  Here  follow 
instances,  among  which,  the  Chinese  word  yu  (a 
monkey)  is  used  in  the  sense  of  "you"  or  "thou." 
"  Notwithstanding  blemishes  of  this  kind,  which  seem 

*  The  Chinese  Empire^  p.  386. 

*  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  706. 
3  /Wflf.,  pp.  73-4. 


THE  TRANSLATION  OF  HOLY  SCRIFPURE     53 

inseparable  from  the  character  colloquials,  this  version 
is  found  of  considerable  use  in  the  Hakka  missions."^ 

In  his  essay  on  Colloquial  Versions  of  the  Chinese 
Scriptures  in  1890,  Rev.  Dr  Burdon  asked: — "Is  it 
advisable  in  the  interests  of  the  general  work  of  missions 
in  China  to  have  so  many  translations  of  the  Word  of 
God  into  a  languagre  which,  thougrh  divided  into  many 
dialects,  is  yet  one  on  the  written  page  throughout  the 
whole  Empire?  This,  it  seems  to  me,  is  very  apt  to 
introduce  confusion  as  to  what  is  the  real  meaning  of 
our  Sacred  Books,  a  result  which  might  be  injurious  to 
the  Chinese  Christianity  of  the  future."* 

At  the  Centenary  Missionary  Conference  of  19071  it 
was  stated  by  Dr  A.  P.  Parker  that  "although  many 
versions  of  the  Bible  were  in  existence,  yet  the  majority 
of  the  missionaries  were  of  opinion  that  a  better  one 
was  needed,  so  it  was  proposed  that  two  Executive  Com- 
mittees be  appointed  to  carry  on  this  work.  .  .  ."' 

It  would  thus  appear  that  every  dialect,  or  nearly  so, 
has  been  provided  with  a  version  of  the  Scriptures. 
There  is,  however,  a  conspicuous  exception.  "The 
British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  have  published  the 
Scriptures  in  the  N^rro-English  of  Jamaica  ;  will  they  not 
consider  the  advisability  of  giving  the  Chinese  an  edition 
in  pidgin-English?*'*  This,  we  regret  to  say,  is  the 
suggestion  of  a  missionary.  Pidgin-English,  it  may  be 
explained,  is  an  undignified  jargon  in  use  at  the  Treaty 
Ports  as  a  means  of  communication  between  foreigners 
who  will  not  learn  Chinese,  and  natives  who  cannot 
speak  English  properly.  It  consists  of  about  five 
hundred  words,  more  or  less  mutilated ;  the  construc- 
tion of  the  sentences  conforming,  as  we  are  told,  to  the 
Chinese  idiom.    To  give  an  idea  of  what  might  befall 

'  Records  0/ Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  74. 
*  md.,  p.  99. 

^  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  North  China  Daily 
News  Office,  p*  37. 

«  A  Cycle  of  Cathay,  1896,  W.  A  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  p.  64. 


64  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  Holy  Book  in  this  "dialect,"  we  quote  the  first 
verse  of  a  classical  composition  in  it — a,  "translation" 
of  Longfellow's  "Excelsior" — translator  unknown,  but 
supposed  to  be  an  American  : — 

"That  nightee  time  begin  chop-chop.* 
One  young  man  walkee,  no  can  stop. 
Maskee  snow  1  maskee  ice  1 1 
He  cally  flag  with  chop  so  nice  { 
Topside  galow." 

*  (Ghop-dippi  quioUsr.)      t  (lUflkM,  oorw  mind.)      %  (ODbop,  %  mark,  a  devioe.) 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  CIRCULATION  OF  CHRISTIAN  LITERATURE 

"The  most  strenuous  efforts  have  been  made,"  says  the 
late  Mr  Alexander  Michie,  "to circulate  the  contents  of 
the  Bible  everywhere,  and  more  especially  in  literary 
China.  Where  the  missionaries  could  not  penetrate 
the  book  could  be  sent,  and  where  they  might  provoke 
opposition  by  their  bodily  presence  the  Scriptures  mififht 
be  quietly  studied  in  chambers  with  much  hope  of 
future  harvest"  No  doubt  appears  to  have  risen  as 
to  the  wisdom  of  this  course,  but  "  the  unloosing:  of  one 
tongfue  led  to  the  unloosinsf  of  many,  and  the  propriety 
of  indiscriminate  circulation  of  the  Bible  without  note 
or  comment  was  freely  discussed  at  the  last  Conference 
in  Shanghai  [1890]."^  "Committees  are  now  discuss- 
ing new  versions,  and  Bible  Societies  are  in  friendly 
rivalry  respecting  them ;  while  perhaps  the  wiser  scheme 
of  restricting  the  circulation,  and  keeping  it  under 
greater  supervision  has  not  received  adequate  con- 
sideration. The  Roman  Catholics  in  China,  as  else- 
where, have  shown  great  circumspection  in  the  issue 
of  the  Scriptures."* 

"  This  promiscuous  distribution  of  books,"  we  learn 
from  Dr  Wells  Williams,  "has  been  much  criticised 
by  some,  as  iixjudicious,  and  little  calculated  to  advance 
the  objects  of  a  Christian  mission.  The  funds  expended 
in  printing  and  circulating  books,  it  was  said  by  these 
critics,  who  have  never  undertaken  ought  themselves, 

^  Missionaries  in  Ckina^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  64. 
«  Ibid^  p.  67. 

66 


56  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

could  have  been  much  better  employed  in  establishing 
schools.  To  scatter  books  broadcast  among  a  people 
whose  ability  to  read  them  was  not  ascertained,  and 
under  circumstances  which  prevented  any  explanation  of 
the  design  in  giving  them,  or  inquiries  as  to  the  effects 
produced,  was  not,  at  first  view,  a  very  wise  or  promis- 
ing course-  But  it  must  be  remembered  that  prior  to 
the  Treaty  of  Nanking  this  was  the  only  means  of 
approaching  the  people  of  the  country.  The  Emperor 
forbade  foreigners  residing  in  his  borders  except  at 
Canton,  and  Protestant  missionaries  did  not  believe 
that  it  was  the  best  means  of  recommending  their 
teachings  to  come  before  his  subjects  as  persistent 
violators  of  his  laws.  .  .  .  No  one  supposed  that  the 
desire  to  receive  books  was  an  index  of  the  ability  of 
the  people  to  read  them,  or  love  of  the  doctrines  con- 
tained in  them.  If  the  plan  offered  a  reasonable 
probability  of  effecting  some  good,  it  certainly  could 
do  almost  no  harm,  for  the  respect  for  printed  books 
assured  us  that  they  would  not  be  wantonly  destroyed, 
but  rather,  in  most  cases,  carefully  preserved.  ...  It 
is  much  easier  to  write,  print,  and  give  away  religious 
treatises,  than  it  is  to  sit  down  with  the  people  and 
explain  the  leading  truths  of  the  Bible ;  but  the  two 
go  well  together  among  those  who  can  read,  and  in  no 
nation  is  it  more  desirable  that  they  should  be  combined. 
If  the  books  be  given  away  without  explanation,  the 
people  do  not  understand  the  object,  and  feel  too  little 
interest  in  them  to  take  the  trouble  to  find  out ;  if  the 
preacher  deliver  an  intelligible  discourse,  his  audience  will 
probably  remember  its  general  purport,  but  they  will  be 
likely  to  read  the  book  with  more  attention,  and  under- 
stand the  sermon  better  when  the  two  are  combined ; 
the  voice  explains  the  book,  and  the  book  recalls  the 
ideas  and  teachings  of  the  preacher."  ^ 

As  early  as  1832  we  find  Dr  Gutzlaff  forwarding  "a 

1  The  MiddU  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  WeUs  Williams, 
LL.D.,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  331-2. 


CIRCULATION  OF  CHRISTIAN  LITERATURE    67 

whole  set"  of  works  of  Protestant  literature  to  the 
Emperor  of  China,  "and  he  made  in  his  rescript  the 
sole  remark,  that  they  were  unclassical."  A  further 
consignment  appears  to  have  been  sent  to  H.M.  in 
183s,  through  the  Viceroy  of  Foh-kien,  who  made 
"very  contumelious  remarks.  We  have  not  read  the 
answer."^ 

In  1835,  Mr  W.  H.  Medhurst  reported  of  his 
journey  into  the  interior,  that  in  "various  parts  of 
four  provinces  and  many  villages,"  he  gave  away 
"about  18,000  volumes,  of  which  6000  were  portions 
of  the  Scriptures."* 

"The  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  in  1853, 
decided  to  celebrate  its  Jubilee  by  the  printing  of 
1,000,000  New  Testaments  in  Chinese,  the  Christian 
public  at  home,  in  common  with  many  of  the  mission- 
aries on  the  field,  hoping  that  the  movement  might 
result  in  the  acceptance  of  Christianity  on  the  part 
of  the  Chinese."* 

In  1859,  ^t  the  literary  examinations  in  Fuchau, 
about  "7000  tracts  and  volumes,  besides  2000  copies 
of  portions  of  the  Bible"  were  distributed,  and  Mr 
Doolittle  tells  us  "the  vast  majority  seemed  glad  to 
obtain  them."* 

Professor  Raphael  Pumpelly  mentions  that  in  i860, 
or  thereabouts,  an  independent  missionary,  who  was 
not  recognised  by  anyone,  "had  accomplished  his 
missionary  work  in  China  by  having  circulated,  as  he 
characteristically  asserted,  so  many  Bibles  in  every  part 
of  China  that  the  inhabitants  of  that  country  can  show, 
at  the  last  day,  no  good  reason  why  they  should  not 
be  damned."^ 

In    1882,  we  have   an    interesting   account    of  a 

>  China  Opened^  1838,  Rev.  Charles  Gntzlafi^  voL  iL,  p.  234. 
'  Chinoy  Its  History^  Arts^  and  Literature^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley, 
voL  X.,  p.  225. 

3  The  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A.,  p.  19. 
♦  The  Social  Life  of  the  Chinese^  1867,  Rev.  Justus  Doolittle,  p.  36. 
^  Across  America  ondAsiOy  1870^  Raphael  Pumpelly,  p.  36a 


68  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

distribution  of  the  Bible  and  Bamboo  in  Hunan.  At 
Touchou,  the  colporteur  was  protected  by  a  military 
mandarin,  one  Tsau  ta-jen,  with  an  armed  escort  As 
the  crowd  clamoured  for  Bibles,  the  guards  laid  aside 
the  sword,  and  joined  in  selling  the  Scriptures.  Even 
the  mandarin — who,  according  to  his  own  account,  had 
cut  off  a  hundred  heads  to  pacify  the  people,  just  lately 
— "rolled  up  his  sleeves,  and  sold  Scriptures  with  as 
much  alacrity  as  if  he  were  killing  rebels.  .  .  •  The 
proceeds  were  not  so  large  as  they  might  have  been, 
but  when  I  had  the  crowd  listening  to  me  patiently, 
I  considered  I  had  got  a  good  bargain."  The  mandarin 
provided  dinner,  at  which  he  himself  swallowed  ''in  my 
estimation  liquor  enough  to  make  two  men  drunk ;  but 
fortunately  he  was  a  well-seasoned  cask,  and  it  only 
made  him  happy."  Dinner  over,  they  adjourned  to  the 
boat,  protected  by  the  mandarin's  whole  force  of  a 
hundred  men,  each  armed  with  a  stout  bamboo,  and 
followed  by  a  yelling  mob  provided  with  "broken 
bricks."  "As  we  left  the  camp,  just  one  stone  was 
thrown,  when  Tsau  shouted  'Beat!'  and  his  men 
turned  on  the  mob  with  a  determination  that  scattered 
them  in  all  directions."  They  then  became  as  friendly 
as  anyone  could  desire,  and  "  I  remained  amongst  them 
till  dark,  and  sold  out  all  the  books  I  had  left."  ^ 

"You  will  see  from  the  above,"  continues  the  same 
writer — Mr  John  Archibald,  of  Hankow — "that  though 
I  have  travdled  over  upwards  of  2500  li  of  new  country, 
visited  17  cities,  and  about  40  towns,  where  a 
Protestant  missionary  has  never  yet  been,  besides 
visiting  5  cities  and  several  towns,  where  I  had  been 
before;  and  although  I  was  able  to  sell  270  Testaments, 
4500  portions  ditto,  and  about  6000  Christian  books 
and  tracts,  yet  little  more  has  been  done  than  to  make 
work  in  the  future  practicable."* 

"Wai-to-ap,"  Mr  Henry  informs  his  readers,   "is 

1  Quarierfy  Record  of  the  Naiumal  Bible  Society  of  Scotland^  October 
1882,  pp.  3i9-3a  ^  Ibid^  p.  322. 


CIRCULATION  OF  CHRISTIAN  LTTERATUHE    59 

important  as  a  point  of  entrance  to  the  Kwongr-si 
province.  Its  proximity,  however,  to  the  district  in 
which  the  Taiping  rebellion  arose  has  fostered  and 
increased  the  natural  antipathy  of  the  people  to  outside 
innovations.  That  the  people  are  not  incorrisribly  set 
asrainst  foreigfners  may  be  seen  by  contrasting  two  visits 
made  to  the  place  within  the  last  few  years.  The  first 
was  made  by  an  agent  of  the  American  Bible  Society, 
in  one  of  his  long  tours  for  Bible  distribution.  As  he 
approached  the  city  he  found  that  the  officials,  aware  of 
his  coming,  had  issued  proclamations  forbidding  the 
people  to  have  anything  to  do  with  him,  or  with  those 
who  accompanied  him.  He  was  met  several  miles 
down  the  river  by  a  deputation  from  the  district 
magistrate,  requesting  him  to  turn  back.  He  per- 
severed, however ;  but  with  the  assistance  of  two  native 
colporteurs,  who  devoted  the  whole  day  to  the  work, 
he  was  able  to  dispose  of  but  one  small  book.  His 
boat  crew  had  taken  some  salt  on  speculation,  which 
they  soon  succeeded  in  disposing  of  at  a  price  much 
below  its  market  value  in  the  place.  The  man  who 
bought  it  did  not  realise  much  profit  in  his  violation  of 
the  order  published  against  trafficking  with  the  foreigner 
or  his  men.  He  was  arrested,  and  fined  one  hundred 
dollars;  his  shop  was  closed  by  official  order,  and  he 
was  so  severely  beaten  in  punishment  for  his  offence,  that 
he  died  a  few  days  after  from  the  eflfects."  Mr  Henry 
continues,  "This  was  not  a  very  promising  beginning 
of  intercourse  with  the  people  of  that  district,"  and  the 
next  year  he  visited  it  himself  when,  "  immediately  on 
my  arrival  the  magistrate  sent  a  messenger  and  an  escort 
with  a  sedan  chair  for  me  to  visit  him  in  his  official 
residence,  and  was  very  cordial  in  his  offers  of  assistance 
and  protection."  Apparently  he  sold  "460  books  and 
tracts  of  various  sizes."  The  crew  tried  to  sell  salt 
again — contrary  to  express  stipulation — but  the  towns- 
folk, very  prudently,  declined  even  to  accept  it  as  a  gift.* 
*  Ung'Nam^  1886^  B.  C.  Henry.  AM.,  pp.  1 16-7-8. 


60  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  1889,  the  three  grreat  Bible  Societies,  viz.,  the 
British  and  Foreign,  National  Bible  Society  of  Scotland, 
and  American  Bible  Society,  between  them  distributed 
in  China,  1454  Bibles,  22,402  New  Testaments,  and 
642,131  Portions  of  Scripture,  making  a  total  of 
665,987.  In  the  same  year,  the  Central  China 
Religious  Tract  Society  issued  1,026,305  publications; 
and  the  Chinese  Religious  Tract  Society  did  the  same 
by  260,922 — ^in  all  1,287,227.^ 

In  1893,  Rev.  James  Gilmour  writing  on  Mongolia, 
tells  us  that,  "  every  dose  of  medicine,  if  it  is  a  powder, 
is  first  put  up  in  an  inner  wrapper  containing  some 
Gospel  truth,  printed  in  sixty-four  characters ;  and  as 
most  cases  require  two  or  more  doses,  these  again  are 
parcelled  up  in  a  larger  paper,  containing  some 
prominent  truth,  printed  in  two  hundred  characters. 
In  this  way  Gospel  truth  is  scattered  far  and  wide  over 
the  district" « 

In  1900,  writing  on  "Christian  literature,"  Mr 
Alexander  Michie  mentioned,  casually,  that  at  one  time 
within  his  experience,  "  one  mission  press  in  Shanghai 
was  pouring  out  30,000,000  pages  annually,  an  amount 
which  was  more  than  doubled  by  the  other  mission 
presses."'  The  same  gentleman  quotes  the  dictum  of 
Rev.  R.  H.  Cobbold  taken  from  the  Messenger  of  April 
1892  that: — *' We  want  quality  not  quantity.  .  .  .  We 
have  an  association  secretary  who  repeats  ad  nauseam 
the  word  millions^  and  whose  cry  is  perpetually  for 
money.  You  never  hear  this  cry  from  Apostles."* 
We  further  hear  from  the  same  authority  that  at  that 
time  the  Hankow  Tract  Society  was  issuing  1,000,000 
tracts  every  year.^ 

In   1905,   we  gather   that   the  circulation    of  the 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  734. 
^  More  about  the  Mongols^  1893,  James  Gilmour,  pp.  259-60. 
'  China  and  Christianity^  1900,  Alexander  Michie  (for  nearly  twenty 
years  correspondent  of  the  Times  in  Pekin),  p.  102. 
^  Ibid.^  p.  102.  ^  Ibid.^  p.  104. 


CIRCULATION  OF  CHRISTIAN  LITERATURE    61 

Scriptures  by  the  three  great  Bible  Societies  men- 
tioned above,  was  as  follows: — British  and  Foreign 
Bible  Society,  1,219,048;  National  Bible  Society  of 
Scotland,  907,274;  and  the  American  Bible  Society, 
S37>304;  the  total  for  the  three  Societies  amounting 
to  2,663,626.^ 

In  the  same  year,  according  to  the  published  report 
of  three  delegates  sent  from  England,  the  tracts 
distributed  in  China  numbered  3> 707, 775  divided 
among  six  societies,  thus: — Central  China  Tract 
Society,  2,567,524;  Chinese  Tract  Society,  340,120; 
North  China  Tract  Society  (average),  500,000 ;  North 
Fukien  Tract  Society  (Foochow),  130,086;  Hongkong 
and  Canton  Tract  Society,  40,045 ;  and  the  West 
China  Tract  Society,  130,000.* 

From  a  review  of  the  annual  report  of  the  China 
Inland  Mission  for  1906,  we  learn  that : — "The  circula- 
tion of  the  Scriptures  has  been  phenomenal,  the  total 
circulated  during  the  past  year  by  the  three  Bible 
Societies  being  2,529,977,  and  it  should  be  borne  in 
mind  that  nearly  all  these  copies  are  sold.  .  .  .  The 
Central  China  Tract  Society  has  from  the  beginning 
circulated  26,037,928  copies.  The  Chinese  Tract 
Society,  Shanghai,  during  1906,  distributed  a  quantity 
equal  to  10,893,322  pages.  The  Christian  Literature 
Society  last  year  issued  164,086,490  pages*  Such  a 
vast  quantity  of  printed  matter  cannot  fail  to  have  its 
effect  even  in  such  a  conservative  land  as  China."* 

At  the  Centenary  Missionary  Conference  held  in 
Shanghai  in  1907,  a  lady  announced  that  "every  few 
weeks  she  gave  over  10,000  leaflets."* 

At  a  public  meeting  in  the  Albert  Hall,  London, 
held  on  31st  October  of  the  same  year,  the  President 

^  The  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  Marshall  Broomhall,  B.A.,  p.  375. 
'  Contemporary  Review^  February  1908,  p.  228. 
'  Peking  and  Tientsin  Times^  12th  November  1907. 
*  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  North  China  Daily 
News  Office,  p.  24, 


62  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  said  that  "a 
hundred  years  ago,  no  part  of  the  Word  of  God  was 
printed  in  Chinese.  Now,  a  Testament  in  Mandarin 
could  be  bought  for  twopence,  and  the  Bible  Societies 
circulated  annually  over  1,000,000  copies.  During 
the  past  thirty  years  over  26,000,000  of  Christian 
books  and  tracts  had  been  issued  in  Chinese.  China 
was  no  longer  asleep,  and  her  door  was  no  longer  shut, 
and  the  millions  of  China  were  stretching  out  their 
hands  for  the  knowledge  which  we  possessed,  and  to 
which  we  owed  our  national  greatness.  It  was  a 
golden  opportunity  for  missionary  work."^ 

The  following  is  a  brief  summary  of  the  operations 
of  the  Bible  and  Tract  Societies  in  China. 

The  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  founded 
in  1804,  is  an  interdenominational  and  unsectarian 
Society,  whose  sole  object  is  to  encourage  the  wider 
circulation  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  without  note  or 
comment. 

It  has  worked  in  connection  with  China  since  1807. 
Up  to  i860,  the  Scriptures  were  given  away,  but  since 
about  that  time  they  have  been  sold  at  a  low  price. 
The  total  circulation  from  18 14  to  31st  December 
1905,  including  Bibles,  Testaments,  and  Portions, 
has  amounted  to  13,246,263.^ 

The  National  Bible  Society  of  Scotland,  formed  in 
1 86 1  by  the  union  of  Edinburgh,  Glasgow,  and  other 
Societies.  "The  Edinburgh  Bible  Society  was  the 
first  among  Bible  Societies  to  sanction  the  sale  by  its 
colporteurs  of  other  Christian  literature  along  with  the 
Scriptures,  the  conditions  laid  down  being  that  such 
literature  should  be  unsectarian,  and  that  the  Society's 
funds  should  not  be  used  in  its  distribution.  .  .  .  The 
National  Bible  Society,  after  the  union  of  1861,  readily 
recognised  the  propriety  and  advantage  of  it."  The 
Society   issued,    in    1878,    the    New    Testament    in 

*  The  Times^  ist  November  1907. 

>  A  Ctnhtry  cf  Protestant  Missians  in  China^  1907,  pp.  553-9,  565. 


CIRCULATION  OF  CIJRISTIAN  LITERATUHE    6$ 

Pekinese  Mandarin,  with  chapter  heading^s  and  maps ; 
and  in  1899,  the  four  Gospels  and  Acts  of  the  Apostles 
annotated  with  ''  explanations  in  the  way  of  translation." 
Since  1864,  it  has  circulated,  including  Bibles,  Testa- 
ments, and  Portions,  7»984»i63  copies,  up  to  the  end  of 
1 905.  ''  The  Christian  tracts  and  books  sold  along  with 
these  Scriptures  may  also  be  reckoned  by  the  million."  ^ 

The  American  Bible  Society  entered  China  in 
1843;  and,  including  the  year  1905*  has  circulated, 
between  Bibles,  Testaments,  and  Portions,  10,620,507 
books,  expending:  for  all  purposes  about  S903, 496-89, 
gold.* 

The  East  China  Religious  Tract  Society  (1844- 
1894)  issued  in  1894,  23,062  Chinese  books  and 
sheet  tracts  containing  375»86o  pages;  and  10 1 
Foreign  books  of  all  sorts. 

In  1894,  this  Society  united  with  the  Chinese 
Religious  Tract  Society,  to  form  one  Society,  the 
Chinese  Tract  Society.* 

The  Central  China  Religious  Tract  Society  (1876- 
1906)  has  circulated  up  to  the  close  of  I905»  26,037*928 
publications — ^including  the  Scripture  Introductions 
circulated  by  the  National  Bible  Society  of  Scotland.* 
While  many  books  of  an  educational  character  are  to  be 
found  on  the  Society's  lists,  the  majority  of  its  publica- 
tions are  essentially  evangelical  in  character.  The 
object  of  the  Society  being  to  put  as  many  tracts  as 
possible  into  the  hands  of  as  many  people  as  possible, 
it  has  been  a  recognised  principle  from  the  beginning 
that  evangelical  literature  should  be  sold  as  cheaply  as 
possible.  The  work  is  carried  on  at  an  average  loss  of 
about  50  per  cent. ;  the  loss  being  made  up  by  grants 
from  Home  Societies,  and  by  the  donations  of  mission- 
aries and  friends.  On  educational  works  there  is 
practically  no  loss.' 

*  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China^  1907,  pp.  567-8-9,  573. 

*  IMd,^  pp.  574-8a  *  Ibid,^  p.  614. 
«  IHd^  p.  618.  ^  IMd^  p.  616. 


64  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

The  Chinese  Tract  Society,  formed  in  1878  as  the 
Chinese  Religious  Tract  Society,  united  in  1895  with 
the  Eastern  Tract  Society.  Its  publications  number 
398,  viz.,  Commentaries,  47  ;  other  works  for  Christians, 
89 ;  for  youth,  55  ;  and  for  non-Christians,  207.  From 
1878  to  1905  inclusive,  this  agrency  has  distributed 
matter  amountingf  to  104,033,983  pases;  and  has 
expended  l99»664S3  in  printing.^ 

The  North  China  Tract  Society  was  organised  in 
1883.  Previous  to  the  Boxer  outbreak  its  publications 
amounted  to  6,000,000  pages  annually.  The  main 
depository  in  Peking,  well  stocked  with  books,  was 
totally  destroyed  by  the  Boxers,  and  the  whole  work  of 
the  Society  paralysed  for  almost  two  years.  Two  of 
the  local  depositories — Tientsin  and  Chefoo — have 
resumed  work.  For  a  long  time  it  was  impossible  to 
secure  copies  of  many  publications,  so  complete  had 
been  their  destruction ;  but  the  list  is  now  about  as  long 
as  before,  except  in  the  matter  of  sheet  tracts.  Almost 
from  the  beginning  the  Society  has  issued  Sabbath 
School  Lesson  Quarterlies,  carefully  prepared  by  a 
special  committee.  The  issue  is  now  4000  copies 
per  quarter,  and  is  steadily  increasing.  For  some 
years  a  monthly  Christian  periodical  was  issued, 
but  was  discontinued  in  1898  for  lack  of  an  editor. 
The  present  demand  for  a  periodical  largely  in 
Mandarin  is  such  that  its  resumption  awaits  only 
the  securing  of  the  General  Secretary,  for  the  attain- 
ing of  whose  support  the  Society  is  now  making 
every  effort.* 

The  China  Baptist  Publication  Society  commenced 
active  operations  in  1899  at  Canton.  Its  catalogue 
contains  ninety-two  titles  of  its  own  publications, 
among  which  are  Gospel  Hymns;  Teaching's  of  Jesus^ 
in  four  volumes,  by  Dr  R.  H.  Graves ;  Stalker's  Life 
of  Christy  and  Meyer's  Present  Tenses  of  the  Blessed 

*  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions^  pp.  620-1-2. 
'  lbid.y  pp.  623-4. 


CIRCULATION  OF  CHRISTIAN  LITERATURE    65 

Life.    A  total  of  147,872  copies  of  the  Society's  own 
publications  were  sold  during^  1905.^ 

The  North  Fukien  Religious  Tract  Society  b^^an 
work  in  1891.  Amongst  other  books  and  tracts  are, 
a  Catechism  of  Christian  Doctrine,  a  Catechism  on 
Astronomy,  and  Dr  Milne's  tract  The  Two  Friends; 
also  the  Five  Character  Classic,  with  commentary  by 
Mr  Tiong.  In  1905  (including  70,000  Sabbath 
Calendars,  and  11 58  books,  maps,  etc),  130,086  copies 
passed  into  circulation.^ 

The  Hongkong  and  Canton  Religious  Tract 
Society  sold,  in  1896,  40,045  publications.' 

The  West  China  Religious  Tract  Society  held  its 
seventh  annual  meeting  in  1907  at  Chungking.  "The 
feature  in  the  year's  work  was  more  in  the  consolidation 
of  the  Society's  position  than  in  increase  of  circulation. 
The  distinguishing  feature  was  that  for  the  first  time  in 
its  history,  the  Society  had  received  contributions  from 
the  United  States.  .  .  .  The  income  from  Chinese 
contributors  is  steadily  increasing.  .  .  .  The  yearly 
circulation  is  130,000.  There  are  161  titles  on  its 
catalogue,  mostly  reprints  of  books  originally  issued  by 
older  Societies."  * 

Besides  these  Societies  there  exists  the  Christian 
Literature  Society  for  China,  which  provides  "  books  of 
comparatively  high  order  for  the  more  intelligent 
classes,  and  books  illustrated  by  chromos  for  families." 
It  publishes  three  periodicals,  the  well-known  Review  of 
the  Times^  for  general  articles ;  the  Chinese  Christian 
Review,  to  guide  the  leaders  of  the  Churches ;  these 
monthly,  and  the  Chinese  Weekly.  The  publications 
range  from  the  Bible  and  Life  of  Christ  to  Law, 
Commerce,  and  Political  Economy.  "One  of  the  best 
proofs  that  our  literature  has  done  good  is  that  some  of 

^  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China^  p.  625. 

*  Ibid.^  p.  626. 

*  IHd,^  p.  627. 
<  Ibid.,  p.  627. 

B 


66  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

our  books  are  now  out-of-date,  because  the  reforms  they 
advocated  have  been  carried  out.  We  claim  a  humble 
share  in  the  awakenings  of  China.  Besides,  our  books 
for  the  native  Church  have  produced  revivals."  Total 
pages  printed  since  1888,  164,086,490.^ 

Printing  presses  have  been  established  by  the 
London  Missionary  Society — given  up  in  i860,  on  the 
establishment  of  the  American  Presbyterian  Mission 
Press,  at  Shanghai,  which  employs  a  Chinese  staff, 
exclusive  of  bookbinders,  of  206,  The  Methodist 
Mission  Press,  Foochow,  output  from  1 891-1903  varied 
from  20,000,000  to  32,000,000  pages  annually ;  eventu- 
ally becoming  a  branch  of  the  Methodist  Publishing 
House  in  China,  of  Shanghai.  The  American  Board 
of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions  commenced  a 
Press  in  1832  at  Canton;  removed  to  Peking  in  1868. 
In  1894  it  printed  1,702,160  pages,  and  in  1900  was 
destroyed  by  the  Boxers;  starting  again  in  1905  at 
Tungchou.    In  190S-6,  1,000,000  pages  were  printed. 

The  Church  Missionary  Society  conducts  a  press  at 
Ningpo ;  the  English  Presbyterians  one  at  Swatow — 
yearly  output  450,000  pages.  The  National  Bible 
Society  of  Scotland  has  very  complete  plant  at  Hankow, 
whence,  since  1885,  8,625,000  Testaments  and  Portions, 
together  with  18,000,000  tracts  and  books,  have  been 
issued.* 

The  Canadian  Methodists  own  a  press  at  Chentu 
[Szechwan],  which  at  the  end  of  1906  had  turned  out 
35,000,000  pages. 

Besides  the  above,  there  are  about  a  dozen  foreign 
presses  in  various  parts.' 

"Amid  the  wondrous  changes  and  reforms  which 
are  taking  place  in  China  with  bewildering  suddenness, 
not  by  violent  revolution,  but  with  the  smoothness  and 
completeness  of  natural  law,  the  general  and  strong 

'  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  Ckina^  pp.  629-34. 
*  Ibid,^  pp.  635-42. 
«  /«^,  pp.  643-4. 


CIRCULATION  OF  CHRISTIAN  UTERATURE    67 

desire  after  knowledge,  if  not  after  truth,  is  accom- 
panied with  a  remarkable  improvement  in  the  attitude 
of  the  scholars  and  gentry  towards  Christian  books, 
including  the  Scriptures,  and  towards  those  who  offer 
them  for  sale,"* 

^  A  CenHtry  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China^  p.  572. 


CHAPTER  VI 

"thinkest  thou  that  thou  understandest  what 
thou  readest?" 

^'Thinkest  thou  that  thou  understandest  what  thou  readest?   And 
how  can  I  unless  some  man  shew  me  ?" — ^Acrs  viil  30-1. 

"By  the  general  voice  of  Christendom,  the  Bible  is 
acknowledsfed  to  be  the  Word  of  God.  I  believe  that 
voice  is  not  mistaken.  Entertaining^  such  a  belief,  I 
rejoice  in  maintaining  the  principle  of  our  Society  [the 
British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society],  which  is  to  circulate 
the  Bible  without  note  or  comment;  and  since  the 
commencement  of  my  agency,  I  have  never  distributed 
a  page  of  other  matter  along  with  it.  .  .  .  While  by  no 
means  ignoring  the  efficacy  and  necessity  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  to  apply  the  truth  to  the  heart  and  conscience ; 
I  yet  believe  that  there  is  a  power  inherent  in  the  very 
words  of  Scripture ;  and  that  we  may  legitimately  look 
for  results  from  its  perusal  which  no  other  book 
warrants  us  to  expect."*  Thus  the  late  Mr  Alexander 
Wylie. 

On  the  other  hand,  according  to  the  Honorary 
Secretary  to  the  Canterbury  Board  of  Missions :— "  The 
mode  of  communicating  the  Truth  must  vary  with  the 
requirements  of  each  race,  and  the  degree  of  their 
culture.  It  seems  impossible,  that  we  can  continue  to 
present  to  the  Negro,  the  South  Sea  Islander,  the 
Chinese,  the  Indian,  the  terrible  Old  Testament  stories 
of  Balaam,  and  Elijah,  Jael  and  Jehu,  the  sad  profli- 
^  Chinese  Resetsnhes^  1897,  Alexander  Wy4ie,  p.  108. 

08 


«  UNDERSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  69 

gacies  of  David  and  Solomon,  the  cruel  damnatory 
Psalms :  they  are  out  of  harmony  with  the  feelings  of 
Europeans  in  the  nineteenth  century ;  how  much  more 
with  Oriental  races  in  a  low  culture  ?  "  ^ 

Also : — 

'"Let  women  keep  silence  in  the  churches,  etc.' 
Paul  wrote  with  reference  to  the  existing  necessity,  and 
the  moral  capacity  of  the  women  at  Corinth,  in  the 
same  way  that  he  wrote  to  Philemon  with  reference  to 
the  existing  necessity  of  dealing  with  slaves.  He  had 
not  in  his  thoughts  the  Holy  Women  of  Europe  of  the 
nineteenth  century.  .  .  .  We  may  lay  this  passage 
reverently  aside,  and  consider  the  subject  on  its 
intrinsic  merits  without  reference  to  Authority,  for,  in 
fact,  it  is  a  new  phenomenon  of  the  present  epoch."* 
So  much  for  "Paul,"  now  for  "James."  Speaking  of 
"Faith-healing"  at  the  Centenary  Conference  of 
Protestant  missionaries  in  London,  the  same  gentle- 
man is  reported  to  have  said :  "  It  stultifies  the  medical 
man  if  a  person  can  pray  over  the  sick,  and  trust 
that  by  a  miracle  he  can  be  healed.  I  should  like  a 
strong  expression  of  opinion  from  this  section  on  this 
subject."' 

Many  such  differences  of  opinion  as  to  the  authority 
of  the  Bible,  and  the  interpretation  of  its  parts  can  be 
found — as  our  daily  experience  shows.  And  when 
Christians  bom  and  bred  cannot  decide  with  any 
certainty,  non-Christian  Chinese  may  surely  be  excused 
for  scepticism  as  to  the  infallible  authority  of  Holy 
Scripture.  But,  at  present,  we  are  confronted  with 
their  difficulties  arising  out  of  the  study  of  the  Bible 
itself.  And  here  it  may  be  said  that  if  the  exponents  of 
Bible  Christianity  believe  in  the  all-sufficiency  and 
infallible  authority  of  the  Holy  Book,  they  are  at  least 

^  The  Gospel  Message^  1896,  Robert  Needham  Gust,  LL.D.,  p.  439. 
2  /feV/.,  p.  102. 

'  Report  of  Centenary  Conference  on  Protestant  Missions  of  the  Worlds 
18881  voL  ii.,  p.  116. 


70  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

logical  in  declining  to  make  note  or  comment  thereon, 
unless  they  can  guarantee  the  party  who  makes  them 
the  same  infallibility  as  they  assert  the  Bible  itself  to 
possess. 

The  Bible,  then,  as  Mr  Coffin,  an  American  traveller, 
well  observes,  when  translated,  "is  not  easy  of 
comprehension  by  the  Chinese.  Christian  ideas  can- 
not well  be  conveyed  by  the  Chinese  language,  for 
want  of  proper  terms,  and  a  great  portion  of  Biblical 
history  is  incomprehensible,  because  of  its  allusions  to 
rites,  ceremonies,  and  customs  with  which  they  are 
unacquainted.  The  opening  of  Mark's  Gospel  in  our 
translation,  is  as  follows: — *The  beginning  of  the 
Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  God.'  'This,'  says 
Mr  Nevius,  'seems  perfectly  simple  to  us,  and  it  may 
appear  strange  to  some  that  any  difficulty  can  be  found 
in  it ;  but  almost  every  word  is  an  enigma  to  a  China- 
man. According  to  Chinese  idiom  the  translation  runs, 
God's  Son  Jesus  Christ  Gospel  beginning."  The  word 
God"  suggests  a  thousand  deities,  supernal  and 
infernal,  but  certainly  not  the  God  of  the  Bible.  .  .  . 
The  names  of  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ  are  translated 
by  Chinese  characters,  resembling  as  nearly  as  possible 
the  sounds  of  the  original,  and  represent  simply 
foreign  names  without  meaning  or  associations. 
"Gospel"  is  translated  by  two  characters  meaning 
respectively  "happiness"  and  "sound,"  but  the 
combination  is  a  new  and  peculiar  one,  and  it  would  be 
difficult  for  the  uninstructed  reader  to  tell  with  certainty 
its  meaning.  The  last  word,  "beginning,"  which  is 
evidently  connected  with  the  two  preceding  it,  forming 
the  expression  "happiness  sound  beginning,"  affords  no 
assistance  towards  making  it  intelligible.  Each  of  the 
following  verses,  looked  at  from  the  Chinese  standpoint, 
presents  similar  difficulties,  and  is  liable  to  some  other 
misconception.* "  *    The  same  gentleman  further  tells  us 

1  Our  New  Way  Round  the  Worlds  1883,   Charles  Carleton  Coffin, 
pp.  360-1. 


(I 


«  UNDERSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  71 

that,  at  the  time  of  his  visit  in  1 866 — **  About  200  native 
preachers  and  teachers  are  employed.  No  theologrical 
school  has  yet  been  established  for  the  training  of 
preachers,  and  the  native  helpers  have  no  commentaries 
or  other  books  to  help  them  to  explain  the  Bible.  But 
the  Chinese  are  a  reading  people,  and  the  leaves  of 
Scripture  scattered  here  and  there  are  read  till  worn 
out."^ 

Concerning  the  Bible  in  Mongolia  some  four  years 
later,  Rev.  James  Gilmour,  of  the  London  Missionary 
Society,  wrote: — "Superficial  judges  have  sometimes 
condemned  it,  because  frequently  a  Buriat  or  Mongol 
will  look  at  it,  read  a  little,  shut  up  the  book,  and  hand 
it  back,  saying  he  cannot  understand  it.  A  little  more 
experience  often  leads  to  the  conviction  that  it  is  not 
the  language  that  is  the  difficulty  but  the  subject 
matter.  .  .  .  There  are  perhaps  instances  that  can  be 
quoted,  in  which  the  Bible  alone,  unassisted,  unexplained, 
has  done,  and  done  well,  its  wonderful  work  of  convicting 
and  converting  men,  and  even  of  originating  a  little 
company  of  devout  Christians.  These  instances,  it  is 
said,  can  be  quoted,  but  they  are  rare;  and  perhaps 
the  old  Siberian  missionaries  would  have  done  better, 
had  they  first  prepared  and  published  (that  is,  if  the 
Russian  Government  would  have  allowed  them)  some 
little  compendium  of  Christian  truth  and  doctrine, 
couched  in  the  common  language  of  the  people."^ 
"Indeed,  long  experience  of  many  different  Mongol 
scholars  attempting  to  read  the  Gospel  in  the  tent, 
leads  to  the  belief  that  the  portions  of  Matthew's 
Gospel  of  which  an  unassisted  Mongol  can  make  sense 
at  all,  are  comparatively  few.  •  .  .  The  difficulty  seems 
to  arise  from  the  want  of  acquaintance,  on  the  part  of 
the  reader,  with  Gospel  truths  and  doctrines,  from  a 
slight  inddiniteness  inherent  to  Mongol  writing,  and 

^  Our  New  Way  Round  the  Warld^  1883,  Charles  Carleton  Coffin, 
p.  361. 

*  Among  the  Mongols^  1870,  Rev.  James  Gilmour,  M.A.,  pp.  52-3. 


72  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

perhaps  mainly,  from  proper  names,  Old  Testament 
references,  and  Jewish  customs  occurring  or  referred 
to  in  this  Gospel  .  .  .  one  is  forced,  rather  unwillingly 
it  must  be  confessed,  to  the  opinion  that  in  propagating 
Christianity  among  the  heathen,  tracts  and  other 
books  of  elementary  Christian  teaching  are,  in  the 
initial  stages  at  least,  a  necessary  introduction  to  the 
Bible  itself ...  it  seems  very  doubtful,  if,  in  many 
cases,  much  good  is  accomplished  by  placing  the  Bible 
in  the  hands  of  a  heathen  as  a  first  step  towards  his 
enlightenment."  ^ 

At  the  Conference  of  missionaries  held  in  London 
in  1888,  Mr  John  Archibald  told  his  colleagues  that : — 
**  Missionaries  want  permission  to  issue  some  explana- 
tion with  the  Bible.  There  is  nothing  to  show  these 
people  what  the  Bible  is,  what  it  claims  to  be,  where 
it  was  issued,  and  what  it  is  about ;  and  the  man  who 
has  it  cannot  make  it  out.  .  .  .  Chinese  is  a  very  bad 
vehicle  for  conveying  Christian  truth.  Those  who 
have  translation  work  to  do  know  that  it  is  impossible 
to  put  Christian  ideas  into  heathen  tongues  without 
some  explanation.  The  very  term  'God'  he  has  no 
idea  of,  and  whatever  words  you  use  give  a  wrong 
impression.  So  with  regard  to  Grace,  Mercy,  and  other 
things ;  if  you  simply  translate  those  words,  you  do  not 
convey  the  truth,  but  you  convey  something  which  is 
not  the  truth."  An  application  to  the  Bible  Board 
resulted  in  the  decision  that  there  might  be  maps  and 
chapter-headings,  and  tables  of  weights  and  measures, 
so  that  the  Chinese  might  know  the  length  of  a  cubit, 
and  the  value  of  a  shekel,  but  nothing  more.* 

In  1890,  Rev.  Alexander  Williamson,  of  the  Scotch 
United  Presbyterian  Mission,  brought  the  question 
before  the  Missionary  Conference  at  Shanghai.  In 
early  life  when  asked   to  accept  the  agency  for  the 

'  Anumg  the  Mongols^  1870,  Rev.  James  Gilmour,  M.A.,  pp.  192-3. 
"  Report  of  Centenary  Cofrference  on  Protestant  Missions  of  the  Worlds 
1888,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  305-6. 


"  UNDERSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  78 

National  Bible  Society,  he  obtained  permission  to 
accompany  the  Bible  with  evangelical  books  and  tracts ; 
later,  headings,  introductions,  and  maps  were  permitted 
to  one  edition  of  the  New  Testament.  Soon  the 
introductions  were  vetoed,  and  the  matter  fell  back 
nearly  into  the  old  position. 

The  Conference  of  1877  had  created  a  little  stir  at 
first  over  this  subject,  which  also  speedily  subsided  into 
the  former  condition.  The  missionaries  felt  themselves 
to  be  **  handicapped  by  the  Bible  Societies,"  and  that 
the  whole  question  as  to  style,  introductions,  notes  and 
general  "get  up"  of  the  book  required  most  serious 
looking  into. 

Nor  was  the  question  of  minor  importance;  it 
concerned  the  Revelation  given  by  God  to  man; 
and  they  must  do  everything  they  could  to  make  the 
Bible  not  only  intelligible  but  acceptable.  The  case 
of  China  was  the  most  powerful  possible.  The  greatest 
non-Christian  nation  in  the  world,  the  most  literary  and 
most  given  to  criticism ;  the  Bible,  an  unknown  book, 
strange  in  style  and  unheard  of  in  doctrine ;  surely  they 
should  take  care  here. 

Some  said  the  Bible  was  an  Eastern  book.  But 
China  was  further  from  Palestine  than  the  latter  was 
from  Great  Britain;  and  Chinese  idiom,  etc.,  more 
alien  to  the  Hebrew  than  was  Hebrew  to  English. 
Others  had  argued  that  the  Bible  was  "self-interpret- 
ing." It  might  be  said  to  be  so  to  one  who  could 
(i)  read,  and  (2)  had  also  some  preparatory  knowledge 
of  its  contents. 

They  were  also  told  that  the  Bible,  being  God's 
Revelation  to  man,  they  were  under  the  highest 
obligations  to  give  it  to  every  man.  Yes,  the  truth  it 
contained,  but  not  necessarily  in  the  precise  form  in 
which  it  was  bound  up  in  those  covers,  and  certainly 
not  to  those  who  were  as  yet  unable  to  make  good  use 
of  it.  There  was  a  time  when  there  was  no  Bible,  only 
a  few  written  parchments,  or   brick  tablets.     Other 


74  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

revelations  were  sTiven  as  the  Israelites  were  able  to 
understand  them.  So  also  in  the  New  Testament 
Church,  first  one  Gospel,  up  to  the  entire  canon.  *'  But 
hundreds  of  thousands  entered  into  the  King^dom  of 
God  without  any  Bible,  simply  by  faith  in  the  teaching 
of  the  Apostles  and  their  successors."  Our  Lord 
Himself  had  said  He  had  many  things  to  communicate 
to  His  disciples,  but  they  were  not  yet  able  to  under- 
stand them.  How  then  could  they  imagine  that  the 
Chinese,  who  had  never  heard  of  the  doctrines  of  the 
Bible,  should  be  able  to  comprehend  the  whole  revela- 
tion at  once  ? 

The  Bible  was  his  [Dr  Williamson's]  all ;  and  no  one 
could  be  more  emphatic  as  to  their  duty  to  put  it — even 
its  present  form — into  the  hands  of  their  converts  and 
teach  it  to  the  young.  But  he  maintained  the  under- 
standing of  the  Bible  among  the  people  needed  either 
(i)  preliminary  teaching,  a  preparation  which  the 
Chinese  had  not  received;  or  (2)  elucidatory  notes, 
and  that,  therefore,  if  they  felt  it  their  duty  to  give 
them  the  Bible,  they  must  give  them,  bound  up  with 
it,  the  means  of  understanding  it,  that  wherever  the 
Word  of  God  might  go,  the  "key"  might  go  likewise.^ 

First — Historical  and  geographical  notes  were 
needed.  Allusion  was  made  in  the  Bible  to  men  in 
almost  every  chapter,  Abraham,  Moses,  David,  etc. 
Who  were  they?  asked  the  Chinese,  and  where  were 
Egypt,  Babylon,  Assyria,  Jerusalem  ?  And  this  more 
frequently  since  the  necessary  transliteration  of  names 
was  un-Chinese  and  uncouth  to  them,  e.£^.,  Ya-pah-la- 
han  for  Abraham.  And  having  no  help  they,  too  often, 
laid  the  book  aside. 

Second. — Equally  obvious  was  the  need  for  ethno- 
logical notes,  e.£^.,  Feast  of  the  Passover,  of  Pentecost, 
Tabernacles,  Jubilee,  Trumpets,  etc.,  what  could  the 
Chinese  make  of  those ;  or  of  Pharisees,  etc. } 

1  Records  of  the  General  Cofrference  of  Protestant  Missionaries, 
Skangkai,  1890,  pp.  106-7-8. 


••  UNDEBSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  75 

Third. — Biblical  manners  and  customs,  (i)  Shep- 
herds, than  from  whom  no  more  frequent  or  sacred 
instructions  had  been  drawn.  But  millions  in  China 
had  never  seen  a  sheep ;  and  those  who  had,  regarded  it 
as  the  most  stupid  of  animals,  and  the  shepherd  the 
equal  of  the  swine-herd.  (2)  Milk,  never  used  for  food 
except  now  and  then  in  the  extreme  North ;  and  (3) 
grapes,  plentiful  but  never  used  for  wine ;  (4)  Saluta- 
tions, washing  of  feet,  the  holy  kiss,  etc. 

Many  Chinese  customs  diametrically  opposed  ours, 
e.g.^  the  left  was  the  seat  of  honour ;  white,  mourning. 
We  associated  the  old  serpent  with  Satan,  they  with 
the  symbol  of  intelligence,  beneficence,  and  power; 
while  the  dragon  was  their  national  banner,  their  royal 
coat-of-arms. 

Fourth,  and  most  serious.  Chinese  contained  no 
equivalent  for  hundreds  of  Scriptural  words,  only 
approximations.  Wherefore  without  notes  they  came 
far  short  of  conveying-  revecUed  truths  and  sometimes 
taught  error  —  a  strong  statement,  but  one  that 
would  be  borne  out  by  all  duly  acquainted  with  the 
language. 

Nor  had  the  Chinese  any  correct  idea  of  sin — one 
driven  into  the  Jews  by  object  lessons.  Sin  with  them 
meant  "offence";  '*I  offend  you";  in  a  deprecating 
form  "I  b^  your  pardon";  and  not  gathering  the 
true  sense,  the  Chinese  wondered  at  the  importance  we 
set  upon  it. 

Again,  atonement  had  a  not  very  pleasant  mercan- 
tile association :  holiness  meant  the  human  perfection 
of  Confucius;  and,  with  other  terms,  had  to  be 
represented  by  unspiritual  characters.^ 

This  question  was  once  discussed  at  a  large  meeting 
of  the  Scotch  Bible  Society.  A  gentleman  rose,  and 
with  an  air  of  overpowering  solemnity  said :  "  No  notes 
or  comments ;  we  must  give  them  the  sincere  milk  of 
the  word."    Little  did  he  know  that  this  was  the  very 

1  RMcards  af  Shanghai  Cmrferptce^  1890^  pp.  108-9. 


76  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

thing  which  he  and  his  friends  were  preventing  them 
from  doing,  and  compelling  them  to  give  the  Chinese 
little  better  than  husks — words  devoid  of  the  spiritual 
meaning  of  the  original. 

Fifth, — Many  portions  of  the  Psalms,  Prophecies, 
and  Epistles  were  all  mist  to  the  Chinese — who  became 
offended  and  often  cast  the  book  contemptuously  aside, 
^•£'.»  "God  has  been  our  dwelling-place  in  all  genera- 
tions." With  his  materialistic  ideas  the  Chinaman 
asked,  "How  can  God  be  a  dwelling-place?"  Again, 
"Washed  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb" — ^blood  was  not 
purifying  in  the  eyes  of  the  Chinese.  So  also  "  born 
again,"  "the  water  of  life."  He  shrank  from  enlarging 
on  "  Except  ye  eat  my  flesh,  etc.,"  lest  a  bad  use  should 
be  made  of  it  by  scoffers.  One  of  their  most  experienced 
missionaries  had  said  to  him,  "My  oldest  and  best 
native  pastor  confessed  to  me  lately  that,  for  years  he 
had  read  the  Scriptures  chapter  after  chapter,  often 
in  absolute  blindness  and  bewilderment,  reading  the 
characters  easily  enough,  but  entirely  at  a  loss  as  to  the 
sense." 

Sixth. — Names  and  titles  of  our  Lord  presented 
great  difficulty,  e.g.,  the  rock  of  ages,  the  horn  of  salva- 
tion, the  second  Adam :  as  also  those  of  the  Church,  e.g., 
the  bride  of  Christ,  the  golden  candlestick,  and  so  on  : 
as  well  as  of  Christ's  people,  cg.^  kings  and  priests  unto 
God,  members  of  Christ's  body :  and  names  applied  to 
Christian  ministers :  Stewards  of  the  mysteries  of  God, 
etc.  Once  more :  names  applied  to  the  evil  one,  e.s^., 
prince  of  the  power  of  the  air,  father  of  lies,  ApoUyon, 
Beelzebub.^ 

A  Chinese  scholar  had  said  of  a  certain  scientific 
work,  the  characters  were  Chinese,  and  the  sentences 
arranged  in  seeming  order,  but  what  did  it  all  mean  ? 
The  Old  and  New  Testaments  might  be  plain  enough 
to  them  [the  missionaries]  in  Chinese,  and  to  those 
taught  by  them,  because  they  read  a  meaning  into  the 
^  Records  of  Shanghai  Cattferefice^  1890^  pp.  iio-i. 


«  UNDEHSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  77 

characters  which  they  did  not  possess  of  themselves  nor 
convey  to  ordinary  Chinese  readers. 

Seventh. — Maps  and  headings,  now  granted,  might 
be  made  much  more  serviceable,  if  prepared  by  one 
familiar  with  the  Chinese  mind. 

Eighth. — Introductions  to  the  various  books,  giving 
authorship,  and  circumstances  in  which  they  were  com- 
posed, were  still  denied  them.  Why  should  they  be 
required  to  send  forth  books  without  head  or  tail — 
dumb  books,  blind  books — among  this  new  and  inquiring 
people? 

Ninth. — A  general  preface  to  both  Testaments  was 
also  of  paramount  importance,  stating  authority,  con- 
tents, etc.  A  Chinaman  read  Genesis,  and  naturally 
asked  on  what  ground  he  was  to  believe  about  the 
creation,  the  fall,  the  flood,  and  so  forth.  He  turned  to 
Exodus  and  read  about  the  tabernacle,  ark,  altars,  etc. ; 
and  asked,  ''Is  this  Christianity?"  Going  on  to 
Leviticus,  he  asked  the  same  concerning  clean  and 
unclean  animals,  ceremonial  purifications,  an  eye  for  an 
eye.  Farther  on  he  found  wholesale  slaughter  com- 
manded and  carried  out.  At  the  Psalms  and  Prophets 
he  was  perfectly  bewildered,  and  asked,  ''  What  is  all 
this  about  ?  "  Or  let  them  suppose  the  Chinese  reader 
to  fall  upon  the  story  of  Abraham,  Jacob,  David,  or 
Solomon,  he  naturally  asked,  "  Are  these  the  exemplars 
of  the  men  of  the  West  ?  "  The  Chinese  had  through 
all  their  existence  been  extraordinarily  careful  about  the 
purity  of  their  classics,  and  even  of  their  standard 
histories,  and  it  was  deplorable  that  the  missionaries 
should  not  have  it  in  their  power  to  make  the  rationcUe  of 
all  these  lapsi  as  widely  known  as  the  history  of  them. 

If  they  took  the  responsibility  of  publishing  this 
sacred  book^  they  were  under  the  most  solemn  obliga- 
tions to  help  readers  to  understand  it,  not  by  vivA  voce 
explanations  merely,  which  might  or  might  not  be 
possible,  but  with  the  text,  to  go  wherever  the  book 
went 


78  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Tenth. — The  name  for  the  Bible,  Yohy  was  inap- 
propriate. It  was  a  srood  translation  of  *' testament/' 
but  meant  "contract,  agreement,  treaty  and  such  like," 
as  well  After  the  ''Treaty"  of  i860  between  China 
and  the  Powers,  hand-bills  were  widely  circulated, 
intimating  the  old  treaties  were  annulled.  Not  long 
afterwards  a  friend  was  selling  Scriptures  at  one  of  the 
examinations,  when  he  was  asked,  ''Why  do  you  sell 
the  Old  Treaty?  Have  you  not  informed  us  that  all 
the  old  treaties  are  abrogated  and  a  new  one  agreed  on 
by  the  great  powers  ?  "  ^ 

The  Bible  was  by  no  means  unintelligible  through- 
out to  the  Chinese,  but  they  denounced  the  whole 
because  of  the  parts  that  were  so.  It  had  been  useful  in 
many  cases,  but  it  might  have  been  a  thousand-fold 
more  so  had  ordinary  means  been  adopted  to  eluci- 
date it. 

He  had  not  touched  the  question  of  translation. 
Several  of  their  versions  were  admirable— far  better 
than  the  septuagint  which  sufficed  for  the  early 
Christians.  What  would  have  happened  if  St  Paul  and 
St  Peter  had  given  their  time  to  revising  the  Greek  text 
of  the  septuagint  instead  of  going  forth  to  preach  the 
Gospel  ? 

No  possible  translation  being  able  to  make  the  Bible 
plain  to  the  uninitiated  Chinese,  he  proposed  an 
annotated  Bible  which  would  practically  end  the 
"  Term  "  controversy,  give  them  a  uniform  Bible  for  the 
whole  nation,  and  supply  the  urgent  want  of  an  intel- 
ligible and  acceptable  Bible  for  China.^ 

Mr  John  Archibald,  of  the  National  Bible  Society 
(Scotland),  in  noticing  that  all  the  Bible  Societies  at 
work  in  China  had  a  clause  in  their  constitutions  bind- 
ing them  "to  circulate  the  Holy  Scriptures  without 
note  or  comment,"  anticipated  difficulty  in  getting  the 
work  done,  and  the  outbreak  of  a  "  most  lively  dispute  as 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  pp.  112-3. 
*  IbitL^^^  1 13-4. 


"  UNDERSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  79 

to  the  nature  of  the  notes,  and  as  to  who  should  prepare 
them "  ;  and  feared  "an  awful  explosion"  when  all  was 
done.^ 

Rev.  J.  L.  Nevius  (American  Presbyterian)  agreed 
with  Dr  Williamson.  Even  those  portions  of  the  Bible 
best  suited  for  general  distribution  in  China  were  only 
partially  and  imperfectly  understood  by  the  heathen. 
Did  not  this  prove  conclusively  that  it  was  not  the  book 
to  give  to  the  heathen  on  their  first  introduction  to 
Christian  truth  ?  Every  portion  of  the  Scriptures  pre- 
supposed a  certain  amount  of  information  necessary  for 
understanding  it.  In  answer  to  the  question : — "  What 
if  the  apparent  small  results  be  rather  due  to  lack  of 
faith  and  prayer?"  they  might  ask  again:— "What  if 
this  agency  for  which  we  pray,  i.e.^  the  Bible  for  the 
heathen — without  note  or  comment — is  not  of  God's 
appointment  ?  "  In  that  case  had  they  any  good  reason 
to  expect  an  answer  to  their  prayer  ?* 

But  it  might  be  said  that  the  Bible  was  self-interpret- 
ing, and  an  uninstructed  Chinaman,  by  the  earnest  and 
persistent  study  of  it  alone,  might  become  wise  unto 
salvation.  This  was,  no  doubt,  true;  but  how  very 
rare  such  Chinamen  were.  And  supposing  the  case  of 
such  a  one,  would  not  oral  or  printed  explanation  be  of 
great  advantage  to  him?  and  would  it  not  be  their 
obvious  duty  to  supply  them  even  for  him  ? 

It  might  still  be  said,  that  though  the  Bible  without 
note  or  comment  might  not  be  best  suited  to  introduce 
Christianity  to  a  heathen  people,  since  Bible  Societies 
were  so  willing  to  furnish  funds  for  printing  and 
distributing  it,  what  harm  could  there  be  in  their 
doing  so  ?  He  [Dr  Nevius]  answered,  "  Much  in  many 
ways."* 

I.  It  was  practising  a  kind  of  unconscious  deception 
on  the  heathen.  It  was  implied  in  offering  a  book  to  a 
Chinaman  that  it  was  both  useful  and  suitable.    The 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  126. 
*  IMd.^  pp.  127-8-9.  '  Itid^  p.  129. 


80  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

purchaser  was  told  (if  anything  was  said,  which  was  by 
no  means  certain)  that  this  was  a  revelation  from 
heaven,  that  it  was  the  greatest  and  best  of  all  books  of 
the  West ;  that  it  was  what  had  made  Christian  nations 
what  they  were,  and  that  it  would  confer  inestimable 
blessings  on  China,  and  on  every  individual  who 
followed  its  precepts.  This  was  all  literally  true,  but  the 
native  employed  probably  did  not  say  to  the  purchaser 
that  he  would  almost  certainly  not  understand  the  book, 
or  be  able  to  sell  it  to  others,  even  for  the  pittance  he 
gave  for  it,  unless  he  disposed  of  it  for  waste  paper. 
The  buyer  soon  found  out  that  for  himself,  and  the 
result  was  too  often  disappointment,  suspicion,  and  pre- 
judice. Dishonour  was  cast  upon  this  Book  of  books, 
and  upon  the  religion  which  it  represented. 

2.  When  missionary  or  native  evangelist  visited  this 
region,  which  had  been  traversed  by  the  Bible-seller, 
wishing  to  communicate  oral  instruction,  or  distribute 
tracts  specially  designed  for  the  people,  he  was  often 
told  that  his  books  were  not  wanted,  as  they  were  not 
intelligible.  In  this  way  the  Bible-seller,  so  far  from 
paving  the  way  for  the  missionary,  might,  on  the  con- 
trary, obstruct  it  In  Shantung  there  was  a  class  of 
religionists,  or  seekers  after  truth,  scattered  all  over  the 
province.  These  were  the  first  persons  to  gather  round 
the  Bible-agent  and  purchase  his  books.  Their  first 
meeting  with  these  men  was  the  golden  opportunity  to 
win  them  to  Christ.  He  believed  that  in  many  cases 
this  opportunity  had  been  lost.  If  even  the  native 
colporteur  was  what  he  ought  to  be,  and  would  state  to 
the  people  that  this  was  an  ancient  book,  and  a  transla- 
tion, that  it  contained  mysterious  doctrines  not  easily 
understood,  the  case  would  be  somewhat  different. 
Unfortunately,  Bible  Societies  were  not  able  to  secure 
such  men  as  they  would  like.  In  these  early  stages  of 
mission  work  in  China,  nearly  all  of  the  intelligent 
Chinese  converts  were  employed  as  evangelists  or 
helpers,  and  Bible  Societies  were  obliged  to  take  up 


"  UNDERSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  81 

with  men  of  an  inferior  class — the  best  they  could  get. 
In  Shantung,  at  least,  these  men  had  too  often  had 
neither  the  ability  nor  the  disposition  to  do  what  a 
Bible-agent  should  do.  The  paper  before  them  insisted 
on  the  importance  of  securing  suitable  native  agents. 
But  suppose  they  were  not  to  be  had  ?  Should  they  not 
consider  seriously  whether  the  work  should  be  under- 
taken without  them. 

3.  There  was  reason  to  fear  that  unnecessary  opposi- 
tion and  abuse  had  been  aroused  by  the  promiscuous 
sale  of  the  Bible,  and  especially  by  pressing  it  upon 
those  who  did  not  want  it.  In  a  recent  number  of  the 
Chinese  Recorder y  Rev.  F.  H.  James  had  called  their 
attention  to  public  placards  giving  passages  selected 
from  the  Scriptures,  with  the  special  view  of  disparaging 
them,  and  adding  comments  to  put  them  in  the  worst 
light,  as  warnings  against  the  immorality  and  heterodox 
character  of  the  Bible.  Mr  Dyer's  paper  spoke  of  the 
special  trials  and  insults  to  which  Bible-agents  were 
exposed  from  those  who  hated  them  and  their  work.  It 
was  well  for  them  to  inquire  whether  much  of  this  abuse 
might  not  have  been  a  direct  consequence  of  disregard- 
ing the  specific  command  of  our  Saviour : — "  Give  not 
that  which  is  holy  unto  the  dogs,  neither  cast  ye  your 
pearls  before  swine,  lest  they  trample  them  under  their 
feet  and  turn  again  and  rend  you."  ^ 

4.  The  impression  was  sometimes  produced  in  the 
West,  by  unguarded  statements  and  reports,  that  there 
was  actually  a  large  demand  for  the  Bible  in  China. 
In  a  report  of  the  American  Bible  Society  a  few  years 
ago,  its  supporters  were  congratulated  on  the  very  large 
number  of  Bibles  disposed  of  during  the  year,  and  it 
was  stated,  as  a  special  additional  cause  for  congratula- 
tion, that  nearly  all  the  copies  disposed  of  were  sold. 
A  very  different  impression  would  have  been  produced 
at  home  if  the  further  facts  had  been  stated — that  the 
books  were  "sold"  at  a  nominal  price,  being  a  mere 

^  Records  of  Shangkat  Conference^  1S90,  pp.  129-30. 

F 


82  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

fraction  of  tbeir  cost,  and  that,  too,  under  the  mistaken 
idea  respecting  them  given  above.  The  ability  to 
dispose  of  the  Bible  diminished  rapidly  as  the  char- 
acter of  the  book  became  known,  the  seller  repairing 
to  new  fields  to  keep  up  sales.  Of  late  years  the 
sales  in  this  province  had  been  so  exceedingly  small, 
that  Bible-agents  had  felt  bound  in  conscience  to  give 
up  the  work.  One  of  the  Agents  reported  to  him — Dr 
Nevius — that  he  had  reason  to  suspect  that  his  native 
employees  returned  to  him  a  portion  of  their  wages, 
so  as  to  keep  up  an  appearance  of  receipts,  and  give 
some  slight  reason  for  their  continued  employment. 
In  the  last  effort  to  sell  Bibles  in  Shantung  which  he 
had  known,  a  carefully  selected  and  energetic  native 
agent  was  only  able  to  report  sales  to  the  extent  of  less 
than  half  a  dollar  a  month. 

They  were  aware  that  these  views  were  unwelcome 
in  many  places  at  home,  and  that  many  would  fain 
believe  that  they  were  individual  and  exceptional,  not 
representing  the  missionary  body  generally.  Un- 
pleasant as  the  task  was,  he  believed  that  truth  and 
candour  required  that  all  the  facts  relating  to  this 
subject  be  known.  They  believed  that  these  views, 
so  far  from  detracting  from  the  reverence  due  to  the 
Bible,  and  from  its  usefulness,  only  tended  to  enhance 
them.^ 

They  wished:  to  emphasise  the  principle  that  in 
China,  as  a  rule,  evangelists  should  precede  the  Bible, 
and  not  the  Bible  evangelists ;  to  ask  the  continued  aid 
of  the  Bible  Societies  in  still  further  improving  their 
present  translations,  in  securing  a  common  or  general 
version  as  soon  as  possible,  in  which  all  missionaries 
could  unite,  and  in  supplying  the  actual  demand  for 
Bibles  which — though  then  limited  —  was  constantly 
increasing,  and  would,  they  believed,  continue  to 
increase. 

At  that  time  they  did  not  think  it  desirable  to  divert 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890^  p.  130. 


"  UNDEHSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  83 

funds,  which  might  be  used  to  great  advantage  in  lands 
where  the  Bible  was  known  and  honoured  as  the  Word 
of  God,  for  its  extensive  distribution  among  the  masses 
of  China.  They  earnestly  begged  for  the  introductions 
and  explanations  suggested  by  Dr  Williamson.^ 

At  the  same  Conference,  Rev.  H.  C.  Du  Bose 
(American  Presbyterian  Mission)  remarked  that  his 
experience  was  not  that  of  Dr  Nevius.  The  Bible 
was  not  understood,  the  same  might  be  said  of  books 
and  tracts.  The  preaching  of  the  Gospel  was  not 
understood;  but  why?  Because  the  Chinese  lacked 
the  teachable  spirit.  It  might  be  that  these  ''notes 
and  comments''  would  be  much  more  difficult  to 
understand  than  the  written  Word,  and  would  not 
give  the  exact  information  they  wished  to  give.  The 
people  did  not  understand  the  Gospel,  because  they 
did  not  understand  the  general  features  of  the  plan  of 
salvation.  He  would  rejoice  at  notes  and  comments, 
but  they  had  to  remember  that  the  money  was  given 
to  these  Societies  on  condition  that  the  Bible  should  be 
published  "without  notes  and  comments."* 

Rev.  C.  Leaman  (American  Presbyterian)  did  not 
want  commentaries,  and  Chinamen  had  told  him  they 
had  no  use  for  them.  He  had  seen  a  Chinaman 
comparing  his  commentary  and  his  Bible,  and  had 
heard  him  complain  they  did  not  agree.^ 

Rev.  Dr  Graves  (American  Baptist)  believed  in 
short  notes,  but  hoped  the  impression  would  not  be 
made  that  without  note  or  comment  the  Bible  did  no 
good ;  nor  that  they  were  getting  on  Roman  Catholic 
ground,  and  felt  it  dangerous  to  circulate  the  Word  of 
God  without  note  or  comment.* 

Rev.  Dr  Wright,  the  representative  of  the  British 
and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  said  it  would  modify  the 
Society's  operations  in  China,  if  the  Conference  should 
adopt  Dr  Nevius'  statement  that  the  Bible  without 

*  Records  of  Shanghai  Cortference^  1890,  p.  131. 
'  Ibid^  p.  131.  '  Ibid.^  p.  132.  *  IHd,^  p.  132. 


84  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

note  or  comment  should  not  precede  the  evangelist. 
If  they  held  that  Dr  Nevius  was  right  when  he  said 
that  the  Bible  was  not  a  suitable  book  for  distribution 
among  the  heathen,  then  the  burden  on  their  Society 
would  be  considerably  lightened  in  China.  He  would 
be  exceedingly  sorry  to  see  the  paper  of  Dr  Nevius 
printed  in  the  Report  of  their  proceedings.  It  and 
that  of  Dr  Williamson  conceded  the  whole  argument 
regarding  the  circulation  of  the  Scriptures,  that  had 
stood  between  them  and  the  Church  of  Rome  up  to 
that  time.  They  were  willing  to  add  sectional  headings 
— summaries  without  theological  bias;  maps;  alterna- 
tive readings  in  the  Authorised  Bible.  In  addition  to 
the  sectional  summaries,  explanations  might  be  given  of 
all  words  difficult  to  the  Chinese.  A  society  such  as 
theirs  composed  of  Episcopalians,  Friends,  Baptists, 
Presbyterians,  and  all  the  different  denominations  of 
Christians,  could  not  go  in  for  theological  definitions, 
which  would  only  represent  the  shade  of  opinion  of  a 
portion  of  their  supporters.  They  received  money  for 
a  specific  purpose  and  must  so  apply  it.  Much  could 
be  done  by  printing  on  good  paper,  with  good  type, 
and  much  could  be  done  by  improving  the  binding  and 
selecting  colours  which  should  be  pleasing  to  the 
Chinese.^ 

Rev.  Evan  Bryant,  of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society,  Tientsin,  while  in  substantial  agreement  with 
Dr  Williamson,  differed  in  toto  on  one  point.  This  was 
the  theological  nature  of  any  possible  notes.  Let  them 
look  at  the  matter  for  a  moment  In  explaining  the 
term  "atonement,"  or  its  Chinese  equivalent,  which 
view  of  the  atonement  was  to  be  given }  And,  in  like 
manner,  ** justification".^  There  were  three  views  of 
''justification"  before  his  mind  at  that  moment,  and 
there  were  missionary  brethren  in  China  and  at  the 
Conference  that  day  who  held  them ;  now,  which  of 
those  views  was  to  be  introduced  in  explanation  of 
^  Records  of  Shanghai  Coitference^  1890,  pp.  134-5. 


"UNDERSTANDEST  THOU?"  86 

their  Scriptures  for  general  circulation?  Take  also 
the  word  for  ** baptism";  what  explanation  should  be 
given  of  that  word  in  such  Scriptures?  Was  the 
explanation  given  of  that  term  in  the  notes  to  the 
Gospel  of  St  Mark,  already  referred  to,  satisfactory? 
There^  it  was  said  that  baptism  signified  ''washing 
the  heart  and  putting  away  evil"  Now,  could  that 
explanation  be  deemed  satisfactory?  There  were 
many  in  that  Conference  who,  he  ventured  to  think, 
could  not  accept  it  And  so  it  would  be  with  many 
other  expressions  that  were  of  a  theological  char- 
acter, God  forbid  that  they  should  send  forth  among 
that  people,  and  through  the  agencies  of  the  Bible 
Societies,  Scriptures  charged  with  doctrinal  explana- 
tions, that  would  not  only  fetter  the  teachers  and 
the  taught  on  every  hand,  but  also  sow  the  seed  of 
future  discord.  He  most  earnestly  asked  that  Con- 
ference not  to  sanction  any  such  course.  Let  them 
by  all  means  give  notes,  ''historical,  philological,  and 
ethnological,"  with  or  in  their  Scriptures  where  needed, 
but  let  them  beware  of  inserting  with  them  any 
theological  notes.  The  peace  and  prosperity  of  the 
Christian  Church  in  China,  he  profoundly  believed, 
would  be  best  promoted  by  their  keeping  out  of  the 
Bible  Societies'  Scriptures,  all  such  notes.^ 

In  his  reply,  Dr  Alexander  Williamson  said  he  now 
began  to  fear  that,  in  his  endeavour  to  be  moderate,  he 
had  said  too  little.  He  had  adduced  some  important 
terms  or  words  for  which  the  Chinese  had  no  equivalent, 
and  which  they  interpreted  according  to  their  own 
ideas,  and  so  missed  the  truth  intended  to  be  conveyed 
by  the  inspired  writer.  He  now  added  some  more, 
such  as :  (i)  creation^  of  which  they  had  no  proper  idea, 
the  terms  used  commonly  meaning  only  that  made  for 
the  first  time;  (2)  reli^ion^  which  only  meant  instruc- 
tion ;  (3)  worships  which  meant  obeisance  or  salutation ; 
(4)  reverence^  conveying  the  idea  of  respectful  decorum ; 

^  Records  cfShsmghed  Cattfertnce^  1890^  pp.  138-9. 


86  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

(5)  sacrifice,  to  present  offerings;  (6)  all  the  terms 
connected  with  Divine  worship,  ^.^.,  Sabbath,  praise, 
prayer,  prophet,  priest,  bishop,  etc. ;  (7)  those  they  used 
for  a  future  life,  e.s^.,  soul,  immortality,  heaven,  hell, 
etc.,  were  either  Taoist  or  Buddhist ;  (8)  the  anthropo- 
morphic representatives  of  God,  some  very  outr^,  which 
were  liable  to  serious  misunderstanding;  (9)  the 
kinsrdom  of  God,  repentance,  faith,  conversion,  grcue, 
adoption,  reconciliation,  election,  the  flesh  and  the 
spirit. 

Mr  Dyer  [British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society, 
Shanghai]  had  (continued  Dr  Williamson)  made  as 
good  a  defence  as  it  was  possible  for  any  man  to  make, 
but  he  virtually  gave  it  up.  He  said  there  was  no 
doubt,  certain  things  in  the  Scriptures,  such  as  terms, 
names,  geographical  notices,  etc.,  would  be  helped  by 
explanation  in  the  form  of  a  tract.  Why  not  place 
them  in  the  book  where  they  were  needed  ?  Again, 
Mr  Dyer  admitted  that  among  the  heathen  there 
were  certain  portions  which  alone  could  not  be 
understood  by  them,  e.g^.,  most  of  the  prophets,  the 
Revelation,  and  some  of  the  Epistles.  And  he  might 
have  added  the  Song  of  Solomon  and  a  large  portion  of 
the  Epistles.  But  what  Mr  Dyer  admitted  to  be 
unintelligible,  embraced  a  large  measure  of  the  Bible ; 
what  did  he  intend  to  do  with  these  portions  ?  would  he 
cease  to  circulate  them?  or  would  he  continue  to 
distribute  and  sell  what  he  knew  was  not  intelligible 
without  explanation?  and  were  they,  the  missionaries, 
to  be  forced  by  the  Bible  Societies  to  use  a  Bible 
without  note  or  comment,  which  their  own  agents 
admitted  to  be  deficient  in  perspicuity?^  The  mis- 
sionary, quoted  by  Mr  Dyer  as  rejoicing  in  deliverance 
from  the  fallacy  of  "being  so  blind  as  to  think  that 
uninspired  men  could  put  the  Gospel  more  clearly  than 
those  who  wrote  the  Holy  Scriptures  under  the  direct 
inspiration  of  God's  Holy  Spirit,"  fell  into  another  one, 
^  Records  cfShsmghai  Ontfennce^  1890^  p.  139. 


"  UNDERSTANDEST  THOU  ? "  87 

and  his  view  amounted  to  this,  that  they  need  only 
repeat  the  phraseology  of  Scripture  to  their  audiences ; 
no  necessity  for  explanation,  or  teaching,  or  exhortation 
— for,  if  he  admitted  that,  he  admitted  everjrthing. 

Translation  was  not  completed  till  the  meaning  was 
conveyed,  so  the  ''pure  word  of  God''  was  not  given  to 
the  Chinese,  until  they  used  such  terms  and  means  as 
made  it  plain. 

Mr  Dyer  had  given  ten  instances  of  good  having 
been  done  by  the  circulation  of  the  Scriptures.  But  he 
should  have  noted  the  other  side  as  well.  And  he — 
Dr  Williamson  —  would  undertake  to  bring  forward 
several  scores  of  instances  of  missionaries  testifying  that 
Chinamen  had  over  and  over  again  told  them  they 
could  not  understand  the  Bible.  In  fact,  there  was 
hardly  a  missionary  of  a  few  years'  standing,  and  even 
the  Bible-agents  themselves,  but  had  many  instances  to 
that  effect ;  so  in  the  case  of  testimony,  the  one  was  a 
hundred-fold  stronger  than  the  other. 

They  had  not  lost  faith  in  the  Bible,  but  they  had 
lost  faith  in  paragraph  after  paragraph  of  Chinese 
characters,  which  conveyed  no  intelligible  meaning  to 
the  ordinary  Chinese  reader.  Nor  had  the  Bible 
broken  down  in  China,  only  the  Chinese  language  had 
not  in  it  single  characters  by  which  their  spiritual  truths 
could  be  represented  one  by  one ;  and  what  they  claimed 
was  a  paraphrase  in  the  same,  of  a  sentence  or  two, 
explanatory  of  the  true  mind  of  the  Spirit.^ 

It  would  appear  that  two  of  the  great  Bible  Societies 
continue  to  publish  without  note  or  comment.  The 
result  of  the  Missionary  Conference  of  1890  in  the 
case  of  the  third  —  the  National  Bible  Society  of 
Scotland — ^was  ''a  request  that  certain  missionaries 
should  furnish  the  Board  with  such  Notes  on  the 
Gospel  of  St  Mark  as  would  be  likely  to  meet  the 
wishes  of  the  Conference.  These  were  carefully 
considered,  abbreviated,  and  reduced  in  number,  so  as 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  14a 


88  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

to  ensure  that  they  should  not  conflict  with  the 
constitutional  position  of  the  Society,  but  should  be 
rather  'explanations  in  the  way  of  translation'  after 
the  example  of  the  sacred  writers,  who  frequently 
interject  the  phrase  'which  being  by  interpretation/ 
in  order  to  make  a  strange  word  or  phrase  intellisnlble 
and  luminous  to  their  readers.  Ultimately  the  Board 
unanimously  resolved  to  issue  a  tentative  edition  of 
St  Mark's  Gospel  thus  annotated,  which  was  published 
in  1893.  By  the  end  of  the  year,  70,000  copies  had 
been  called  fon  By  1899,  the  three  remaining  Gospels 
and  the  Book  of  Acts  had  in  like  manner  been  carefully 
annotated,  and  all  had  been  issued  from  the  Society's 
press  at  Hankow ;  each  copy  having  a  brief  introduction, 
a  map  of  Palestine,  and  one  coloured  illustration.  Well 
nigh  two  and  a  half  million  copies  have  now  been  issued 
in  China  itself  and  far  beyond  the  bounds  of  the 
Eighteen  Provinces."^ 

*  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China^  1^7,  ed.  by  D,  Mac- 
Gillivray,  p.  569. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE 

The  question  now  arises  as  to  the  application  by  the 
Chinese  of  the  Scriptures,  etc.,  with  which  they  have 
been  provided  by  purchase  or  gift.  And  first,  we  have 
to  consider  the  reading  population,  i.e.^  those  able  to 
read,  outside  the  literati. 

In  1869,  the  late  Dr  Nevius,  a  Presbyterian  mis- 
sionary, wrote: — ''Many  persons  who  have  attended 
school  a  few  years,  and  learned  the  names  of  a  consider- 
able number  of  the  most  common  characters  without 
having  learned  their  meanings,  may  be  able  to  read  a 
page  of  a  book  or  most  of  the  characters  in  it,  very 
much  as  a  person  may  read  a  page  of  Latin  without 
knowing  anything,  or  but  very  little,  about  the  language. 
.  .  .  Again  a  person  in  a  drug-store  may  become 
familiarly  acquainted  with  the  characters  designating 
every  article  in  the  store,  and  also  with  the  terms  and 
expressions  used  in  keeping  books  and  business  letters." 
Excepting  those  two  classes,  ''those  who  can  under- 
stand literature  generally,  the  proportion  of  readers  is 
very  small''  ^ 

In  1877,  Rev.  Dr  Martin  informs  us  that  "on  this 
subject  a  false  impression  had  gone  abroad.  We  hear 
it  asserted  that  'education  is  universal  in  China;  even 
coolies  are  taught  to  read  and  write.'  In  one  sense  this 
is  true,  but  not  as  we  understand  'reading  and  writing.' 
In  the  alphabetical  vernaculars  of  the  West,  the  ability 
to  read  and  write  implies  the  ability  to  express  one's 

^  China  and  ike  Chinese^  1869^  ^^v*  Jo^°  ^  Nevius,  pp.  210-1. 

89 


90  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

thought  by  the  pen,  and  to  grasp  the  thought  of 
others  when  so  expressed.  In  Chinese,  and  especially 
in  the  classical  or  book  language,  it  implies  nothing 
of  the  sort.  A  shopkeeper  may  be  able  to  write 
the  numbers  and  keep  accounts  without  being  able 
to  write  anything  else ;  and  a  lad  who  has  attended 
school  for  several  years  will  pronounce  the  characters 
of  an  ordinary  book  with  faultless  precision,  yet  not 
comprehend  the  meaning  of  a  single  sentence.  Of 
those  who  can  read  understandingly  (and  nothing 
else  ought  to  be  called  reading),  the  proportion  is 
greater  in  towns  than  in  rural  districts.  But  striking 
an  average,  it  does  not,  according  to  my  observation, 
exceed  i  in  20  for  the  male  sex,  and  i  in  10,000  for 
the  female — rather  a  humiliating  exhibit  for  a  country 
which  has  contained  for  centuries  such  a  magnificent 
institution  as  the  Hanlin  Academy."^ 

In  the  revised  edition  of  his  well-known  work  on 
China,  Dr  Wells  Williams  considers  the  question 
in  1883.  "How  great  a  proportion  of  the  people  in 
China  can  read,  is  a  difficult  question  to  answer,  for 
foreigners  have  had  no  means  of  learning  the  facts  in 
the  case,  and  the  natives  never  go  into  such  inquiries. 
More  of  the  men  in  the  cities  can  read  than  in  the 
country,  and  more  in  some  provinces  than  in  others. 
In  the  district  of  Nanhai,  which  forms  part  of  the  city  of 
Canton,  an  imperfect  examination  led  to  the  belief  that 
nearly  all  the  men  were  able  to  read,  except  fishermen, 
agriculturists,  coolies,  boat-people,  and  fuellers,  and  that 
two  or  three  in  ten  devote  their  lives  to  literary  pursuits. 
In  less  thickly  settled  districts,  not  more  than  four-  or 
five-tenths,  and  even  less  can  read.  In  Macao,  perhaps, 
half  the  men  can  read.  From  an  examination  of  the 
hospital  patients  at  Ningpo,  one  of  the  missionaries 
estimated  the  readers  to  form  not  more  than  five 
per  cent,  of  the  men ;  while  another  missionary  at  the 

»  The  Chinese^  Their  Education^  Philosophy  and  LeiUrs^  1898,  W.  A. 
P.  Martin,  p.  74. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  91 

same  place,  who  made  inquiry  in  a  higher  grade 
of  society,  reckoned  them  at  20  per  cent.  The 
villagers  about  Amoy  are  deplorably  ignorant ;  one  lady 
who  had  lived  there  twenty  years  writes  that  she  had 
never  found  a  woman  who  could  read,  but  these  were 
doubtless  from  among  the  poorer  classes.  It  appears 
that  as  one  goes  north,  the  extent  and  thoroughness  of 
education  diminishes.  Throughout  the  Empire  the 
ability  to  understand  books  is  not  commensurate  with 
the  ability  to  read  the  characters,  and  both  have  been 
somewhat  exaggerated.  Owing  to  the  manner  in  which 
education  is  commenced — learning  the  forms  and  sounds 
of  characters  before  their  meanings  are  understood — it 
comes  to  pass  that  many  persons  can  call  over  the 
names  of  the  characters,  while  they  do  not  comprehend 
in  the  least  the  sense  of  what  they  read.  Moreover, 
in  the  Chinese  language  different  subjects  demand 
different  characters ;  and  although  a  man  may  be  well 
versed  in  the  classics  or  in  fiction,  he  may  be  easily 
posed  by  being  asked  to  explain  a  simple  treatise  in 
medicine  or  mathematics,  in  consequence  of  the  many 
new  or  unfamiliar  words  on  every  page."^ 

Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  for  ten  years  a  missionary  in 
Canton,  informs  us  that  "  whole  villages  are  met  with, 
where  not  one  in  a  hundred  can  read  or  write  intel- 
ligently."* He  wrote  in  1884.  In  the  following  year 
Mr  Dukes  found  that  **the  most  deplorably  ignorant 
province  is  Fuh-kien.  Intelligent  and  judicious  col- 
porteurs have  assured  the  writer  that  only  i  or  2  per 
cent,  of  the  men  can  read  with  sufficient  intelligence  to 
allow  of  the  hope  that,  if  they  receive  the  Scriptures, 
their  own  eyes  could  convey  the  meaning  to  their  minds 
and  hearts."* 

1  The  MiddU  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  WeUs  Williams, 
LL.D.,  vol.  L,  pp.  544-5- 

'  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  p.  42. 

'  Everyday  Life  in  China^  1885,  Edwin  Joshua  Dukes  (Missionary  of 
Fuh-kien),  pp.  166-7. 


92  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

At  the  Conference  of  1890,  Rev.  John  C.  Gibson, 
considering  the  true  test  in  this  matter  as  ''ability  to 
understand  a  book  written  in  a  simple  style  upon  any 
non- technical  subject,"  proceeded  to  estimate.  '*  Let  us 
take  the  whole  population  at  3CX),ooo,ooo.  From  this 
total  we  must  first  deduct  the  number  of  children  who 
are  too  young  to  read,  say  under  ten  years  of  age. 
Taking  these  at  25  per  cent,  of  the  population,  they 
would  number  75,cxx),ooo  in  alL  Deducting  these,  we 
have  225,ooo,cxx>  as  the  adult  population  with  which  we 
have  to  deal.  It  may  be  taken  as  roughly  correct  that 
half  this  number  are  men  and  half  are  women.  The 
women,  as  a  rule,  do  not  read.  There  are  exceptions, 
and  there  are  occasionally  women  distinguished  for 
scholarship.  All  cases  will  be  covered  if  we  estimate 
that  of  the  112,500,000  women,  i  per  cent,  or  1,125,000 
in  all,  are  able  to  read.  Of  the  1 12,500,000  men  it  is  a 
liberal  estimate  to  say  that  10  percent,  or  11,250,000 
in  all,  may  be  reckoned  as  readers.  .  .  .  Total  number 
of  readers,  12,375,000."  Then,  quoting  Dr  Martin's 
words  given  above,  Dr  Gibson  continues,  "This 
estimate  by  Dr  Martin  reduces  the  number  of  readers  to 
5,737,000  or  under  6,000,000,  and  I  am  not  prepared  to 
say  it  is  too  low. 

Since  publishing  my  estimate  I  have  received 
many  communications  from  different  parts  of  China, 
expressing  concurrence  in  it  I  have  before  me  a 
list  of  twenty  names,  chiefly  of  missionaries,  none 
of  whom  have  been  less  than  ten  years  in  China, 
who  have  expressed  more  or  less  strongly  their  agree- 
ment with  me  in  my  estimate  of  the  number  of 
readers.  .  .  ."^ 

Mr  Adamson,  of  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society,  writes,  **  I  should  think  that  not  more  than  10 
per  cent,  of  the  people  in  the  North  of  Shen-si  can  read 
the  written  character  intelligently."  * 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890^  p.  67. 
«  Ibid.,  p.  8a 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  98 

"Dr  R.  W.  Thompson  said  at  the  International 
Missionary  Conference,  *  I  am  told  by  missionaries  in 
the  North  of  China  that  3  per  cent  of  the  people  can 
read.'"^ 

With  reference  to  the  Mandarin-speakingf  districts  the 
Rev.  W.  Cooper,  of  the  China  Inland  Mission,  writes : — 
"  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  we  have  the  Scriptures 
and  other  Christian  books  in  Mandarin  colloquial, 
which,  when  read  in  the  hearing  of  the  congregation  are 
fairly  well  understood  ;  nevertheless,  the  number  of  our 
converts  is  so  small,  and  the  difficulty  of  learning  the 
character  so  great,  that  we  despair  of  getting  the 
Christians,  as  a  body,  by  this  means  to  read  and  under- 
stand the  Word  of  God  for  themselves.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  very  few  of  them  have  the  time  or  ability  to  learn 
the  character  sufficiently  to  enable  them  to  read  intelli- 
gently, even  after  years  of  attendance  on  Christian 
preaching."  Hence  Mr  Hudson  Taylor  appears  to 
have  tried  a  system  of  Romanized  Mandarin  colloquial, 
which  proved  more  successful.^ 

The  question  may  occur  to  the  reader : — **  How,  then, 
are  official  proclamations,  issued  by  the  Chinese  Govern- 
ment, understood?"  This  is  answered  for  us  by  Rt. 
Rev.  J.  S.  Burdon  as  follows ; — "  We  are  all  familiar 
with  the  kind  of  crowd  that  gathers  round  a  freshly 
issued  proclamation,  if  of  general  interest.  It  consists 
of  all  classes,  educated  and  uneducated.  Each  man  tries 
to  read,  half  aloud,  according  to  his  ability.  Many  are 
puzzled  by  characters  that  they  have  either  forgotten  or 
never  known,  but  these  are  skipped,  and  somehow  or 
other  everyone  gets  a  general  idea  of  the  gist  of  the 
proclamation  by  means  of  two  or  three  of  its  most 
prominent  phrases,  and  these  are  repeated  from  mouth 
to  mouth  in  their  Wen-li  dresSy  without  any  attempt  to 
translate  them  into  colloquial  even  to  those  who  cannot 
read.  .  .  .  This  is  the  way  in  which  China  is  governed, 

1  Records  of  Shanghai  Cofrference^  1890,  p.  8a 
»  Ilnd.,  p.  87. 


94  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

and  has  been  governed  for  centuries,  and  it  answers  well 
for  Chinese  purposes."^ 

In  a  work  published  in  1901,  Rev.  Dr  Gibson  bringfs 
our  information  up  to  date,  by  repeating  his  own 
estimate  of  Chinese  readers  and  that  of  Rev.  Dr 
Martin,  previously  given  at  the  Conference  of  1890.^ 

In  I907i  three  delegates  sent  from  England  to  the 
Missionary  Conference  of  that  year  at  Shanghai — 
Messrs  Fox,  Macalister,  and  Simpson — reported  as 
follows  : — "  Although  the  Chinese  are  considered  a 
literary  people,  and  have  naturally  desire  for  education ; 
yet,  owing  to  the  extreme  difficulty  of  mastering  the 
Chinese  characters,  it  is  estimated  that  only  i  in  10 
of  the  population  can  read  or  write."* 

Such  being  the  number  of  Chinese  who  can  make 
intelligent  use  of  the  Bible,  "  it  is  not  surprising,"  says 
Dr  Wells  Williams,  "that  the  fate  of  these  books 
cannot  be  traced,  for  that  is  true  of  such  labours  in  other 
lands.  On  the  one  hand,  they  have  been  seen  on  the 
counters  of  shops,  cut  in  two  for  wrapping  up  medicines 
and  fruit — which  the  shopman  would  not  do  with  the 
worst  of  his  own  books  ;  on  the  other,  a  copy  of  a  gospel 
containing  remarks  was  found  on  board  the  admirals 
junk  at  Tinghai,  when  that  town  was  taken  by  the 
English  in  1840.  They  certainly  have  not  all  been  lost 
or  contemptuously  destroyed,  though  perhaps  most 
have  been  like  seed  sown  by  the  wayside."  * 

In  1906,  we  read  that: — *'I  found  a  week  or  two 
ago,  says  a  Bible-agent  of  Yung  Ping  Fu,  Chih-li 
Province,  that  our  copies  of  the  Scriptures  were  being 
surreptitiously  bought  from  colporteurs  on  the  streets 
and  then  employed  in  wrapping  up  copper  coins,  much 

1  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  pp.  102-3. 

^  Mission  Problems  and  Mission  Methods^  in  South  China^  1901,  J. 
Campbell  Gibson,  M.A.,  D.D.,  p.  41. 

'  Contemporary  Review^  February  1908,  p.  231. 

«  The  Middle  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  Wells  Williams, 
LL.D.,  vol.  ii.,  p.  332. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  96 

in  the  same  way  that  dollars  are  wrapped  up  by  foreign 
banks.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  Scriptures  are  sold 
much  too  cheaply ;  cheaper,  indeed,  than  the  commonest 
paper  that  can  be  purchased  in  China,  and  it  seems  that 
the  Bible  Societies  should  agree  together  to  raise  the 
price  somewhat.  Better  smaller  sales  than  such  wanton 
destruction  of  the  Sacred  Book.  A  large  firm  that  had 
so  used  our  books  sent  a  written  apology,  undertook  not 
to  repeat  the  offence,  and  contributed  the  sum  of  $20  in 
gold  to  the  Government  Boys*  School  in  Tientsin.  In 
the  settlement  of  this  case,  it  is  a  pleasure  to  add 
that  we  are  indebted  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Bishop, 
to  whom  the  offending  business-house  appealed."^ 

In  1907,  the  present  writer  caused  inquiries  to  be 
made  in  China.  It  was  admitted,  said  his  corre- 
spondent, that  of  the  Scriptures  and  Tracts,  "about  90 
per  cent,  is  lost,  a  large  proportion  being  used  for 
making  the  soles  of  Chinese  boots  and  shoes,  and 
the  balance  being  turned  to  other  uses.  The  degree 
of  fruit  borne  by  the  10  per  cent,  that  is  read  must,  to 
a  large  extent,  be  a  matter  of  guess-work.  Often  it  lies 
dormant  for  years  in  some  obscure  corner  of  the 
interior,  when,  a  chance  reader  coming  across  it,  is 
struck  by  what  he  reads,  makes  inquiries,  and  eventually 
becomes  converted.  He  [the  informant]  certainly  told 
me  some  remarkable  cases  of  this  that  came  under  his 
own  observation.  Apparently,  one  of  the  most  popular 
books  is  the  Book  of  Job  ;  the  spirit  in  which  Job  met 
his  troubles  seems  to  appeal  to  the  Chinese  peasant, 
living  in  grinding  poverty,  and  oppressed  by  the 
mandarin,  and  he  finds  a  solace  in  Job's  view  of  life 
which  leads  him  to  higher  things.  One  cannot  say 
that  there  is  not  the  grace  of  God  working  here,  but 
the  whole  result  seems  wretchedly  inadequate  to  the 
powder  and  shot  expended.  .  .  ."* 

^  Quoted  from  North  China  Daily  News^  2nd  April  1906,  by  Catholic 
Herald  of  India. 

*  Letter  to  the  writer,  dated  29th  September  1907. 


96  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

We  have  now  to  consider  the  case  of  those  who  do 
understand  the  Scriptures  according  to  their  lights. 
"Another  cause  of  stumbling,"  Lord  Curzon  tells  us, 
"is  supplied  by  the  unedited  and  ill-revised  translations 
of  the  Bible,  and  particularly  of  the  Old  Testament, 
that  are  printed  off  by  the  million,  and  scattered 
broadcast  through  the  country.  It  never  seems  to 
occur  to  the  missionary  societies,  that  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  which  require  in  places  some  explanation, 
if  not  some  expurgation,  for  ourselves,  may  stand  in 
still  greater  need  of  editing  for  a  community  who 
care  nothing  about  the  customs  or  prepossessions 
of  the  ancient  Jews,  but  who  are  invited  to  accept 
the  entire  volume  as  a  revelation  from  on  high.  I 
am  aware  of  a  so-called  English  missionary  who 
rampages  about  Central  Asia  with  the  funds  sup- 
plied by  societies  at  home,  and  who,  taking  with 
him  a  portmanteau  full  of  Bibles,  thinks  that  by 
dropping  its  contents  here  and  there,  he  is  winning 
recruits  to  the  fold  of  Christ.  What  is  the  educated 
Chinaman  likely  to  think,  for  instance,  of  Samuel 
hewing  Agag  in  pieces  before  the  Lord,  or  of 
David  setting  Uriah  in  the  forefront  of  the  battle, 
and  commissioning  Solomon  to  slay  Shimei,  whose 
life  he  had  himself  sworn  to  spare,  or  of  Solomon 
exchanging  love-lyrics  with  the  Shulamite  women  .^ 
Even  in  the  New  Testament,  the  bidding  to  forsake 
father  and  mother  for  the  sake  of  Christ  must  to  the 
Chinaman's  eyes  be  the  height  of  profanity,  whilst  if 
he  can  follow  the  logic  of  St  Paul,  he  accomplishes  that 
which  is  beyond  the  power  of  many  educated  Christians. 
To  the  Chinese  people,  who  have  great  faith  but  little 
hope  in  their  own  creeds,  a  simple  statement  of  the 
teaching  of  Christ  might  be  a  glorious  and  welcome 
revelation.  But  the  text  of  the  Scriptures,  un- 
softened  and  unexplained,  has  no  such  necessary 
effect,  and  is  capable  in  ingenious  hands  (as  the 
Hunan  publications  sufficiently  showed)  of  being  con- 


THB  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  97 

verted  into  an  argument  against  that  which  it  is 
intended  to  support."^ 

The  '*  Hunan  publications/'  it  may  be  explained, 
were  a  series  of  some  thirty  or  more  pamphlets 
containing  copious  quotations  from  the  Bible  in  dis- 
paragement of  Christianity,  extensively  circulated  in 
the  province  of  Hunan,  in  the  year  1891.  Their 
authorship  was  traced  by  Rev.  Griffith  John  to  one 
Chow-Han,  an  "expectant"  official  who  resided  near 
Chang-sha ;  and  they  were  largely  responsible  for  the 
anti-foreign  riots  of  the  same  year. 

"If  the  text  of  the  Bible,"  Lord  Curzon  proceeds, 
"  is  thus  wrested  into  a  cause  of  offence,  neither  is  the 
intrinsic  abstruseness  of  the  dogma  which  it  inculcates 
easy  of  interpretation  in  a  manner  which  conveys 
enlightenment  to  the  Chinese  intellect.  The  mysteries, 
for  instance,  attaching  to  the  Christian  theogony,  and 
to  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  while  to  the  believer  they 
only  supply  welcome  material  for  faith,  are  to  the 
unbeliever  excellent  ground  for  suspicion."* 

Years  before,  Mr  Edkins  had  expressed  similar 
views.  "While  so  few,  it  is  better  for  them  [the 
Chinese  Protestant  converts]  not  to  be  thrown  entirely 
on  their  own  resources.  They  might  fall  into  error,  as 
did  the  Kwangsi  Christians,  who  began  so  well  and  so 
seriously  with  reading  the  Scriptures  and  prayer- 
meetings.  There  was  no  one  to  tell  them  that  our 
religion  is  peaceful,  and  that  the  weapons  of  our  warfare 
are  not  carnal  The  zeal  of  these  men  which,  untem- 
pered  by  an  enlightened  prudence,  led  them  to  the  brink 
of  destruction,  would  have  wrought  wonders  for  the 
spread  of  Christianity  if  rightly  directed.  Among  the 
lessons  that  we  have  learned  by  their  history  is  this, 
that  in  prosecuting  the  task  of  evangelising  China  there 
needs  to  be  careful  instruction  added  to  the  possession 

1  ProbUms  of  the  Far  East^.  1894,  Hon.  George  N.  Curzon,  M.P., 

pp.  313-4. 

>  Jbid,^  p.  314. 

G 


98  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

of  the  Word  of  God.    The  Bible  needs  an  expositor, 
and  zeal  needs  a  wise  regulating  prudence."^ 

Rev.  James  Gilmour,  of  the  London  Mission,  who 
was  in  Mongolia  in  1870,  found  that  ''a  Mongol  some- 
times asks  how  we  know  all  that  our  Bible  tells  us  of  a 
future  state  to  be  true."*  The  answer  is  not  recorded, 
but  elsewhere  we  find  that  "  as  to  subjects  not  treated 
of  in  the  Bible,  and  doctrines  difficult  to  fathom,  perhaps 
the  most  successful  method  of  dealing  with  an  objector 
is  to  explain  that  the  Bible  does  not  claim  to  be  a  com- 
plete set  of  treatises  explaining  everything,  but  a  guide- 
book pointing  out  clearly  the  way  to  heaven,  informing 
the  traveller  of  everything  which  it  is  needful  or  helpful 
for  him  to  know,  but  leaving  a  multitude  of  things 
to  be  seen  and  learned  by  him  when  he  arrives  at  his 
destination."* 

As  concrete  examples  of  difficulties  raised  by  the 
Bible  in  China,  we  learn  that  "Chinese  students  of 
Bible  history  find  it  almost  impossible  to  accept  the 
first  chapter  of  Exodus  as  an  accurate  translation.  It 
seems  to  them  so  preposterous  to  assert  that  Pharaoh 
could  have  commanded  that  the  boys  should  all  be 
drowned  and  the  girls  saved  alive."*  [This  in  conse- 
quence of  the  comparatively  little  value  they  themselves 
attach  to  girls — as  will  be  made  abundantly  plain  later.] 

**No  doubt,"  writes  a  Chinese  gentleman,  "the 
Protestant  missionary  has  lately  [this  was  originally 
written  in  a  newspaper  in  1891]  taken  a  great  deal  to 
what  he  calls  science  and  scientific  teaching.  He  can 
no  doubt  tell  his  native  pupils  that  the  mandarins  are 
foolish  to  make  a  fuss  about  the  eclipse  of  the  moon ; 
but  will  he  not  in  the  very  next  hour  have  to  tell  the 
same  pupils  that  the  sun  and  moon  did  stand  still  at  the 

*  The  Religious  Condition  of  ike  Chinese^  1859,  Rev.  Joseph  Edkins, 
B.A.,  pp.  285-6. 

*  Among  the  Mongols,  1870,  Rev.  James  Gilmour,  M.A.,  p.  203. 
'  Ibid.,  pp.  207-8. 

*  Wanderings  in  China,  1886,  C.  F.  Gordon  Gumming,  vol.  i.,  pp.  195-6. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  99 

bidding  of  the  Hebrew  General  Joshua,  and  that  the 
book  in  which  this  true  fact  is  recorded,  is  a  holy  book 
written  at  the  dictation  of  the  all-wise  Author  of  the 
Universe?  Now,  I  appeal  to  everyone  who  has  the 
cause  of  intellectual  enlightenment  at  heart,  to  say 
whether  anything  can  be  more  anti-scientific  than  this 
— to  call  it  by  no  harsher  name — intellectual  jugglery. 
The  fact  that  the  missionary  is  himself  unconscious  of  it, 
only  proves  the  subtlety  and  magnitude  of  the  mischief 
it  can  do.  I  say,  therefore,  whatever  amount  of  mere 
scientific  information  the  Protestant  missionary  is  cap- 
able of  bringing  into  China,  they  bring  also  with  them 
a  canker  worm  which  must  eventually  put  an  end  to 
all  hope  of  intellectual  enlightenment  for  the  Chinese. 
For  was  it  not  against  this  same  intellectual  jugglery 
that  all  the  great  emancipators  of  the  human  spirit  in 
Europe  have  fought  and  are  fighting  to  this  very  day."  ^ 

Note. — The  **fuss"  referred  to  about  the  eclipse  of 
the  moon  no  doubt  concerns  the  ceremonies,  beating  of 
drums,  gongs,  etc.,  which  take  place  at  the  time,  due  to 
the  superstition  of  the  Chinese,  that  the  sun  is  about  to 
devour  the  moon. 

A  missionary  who  laboured  for  twelve  years  in  China 
has  recorded  his  experiences  with  the  Bible.  He  tried 
to  teach  his  Chinese  servant  some  simple  Bible  stories. 
**  One  night  we  had  got  as  far  as  the  Flood,  and  when 
the  narrative  declared  that  the  tops  of  the  mountains 
were  covered  and  every  living  thing  died,  he  burst  into 
a  paroxysm  of  laughter,  and  with  tears  running  down 
his  face  asked,  *  Wherever  did  all  that  water  come  from  .^ ' 
These  beginnings  in  the  school  of  evangelisation  were 
not  promising.^  .  .  .  Some  of  the  more  critical  converts 
found  out  apparent  discrepancies  in  the  Gospels  which 
would  have  qualified   them  for  a  high  place  in  the 

*  Papers  from  a  Viceroys  Yamen^  1901,  Ku  Hung-Ming,  M.A., 
pp.  39.40. 

'  Chinamen  at  Hame^  1900^  Thomas  G.  Selby  (twelve  years  a  mis- 
sionary in  China),  p^  197. 


100         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Tubingen  school.*  .  .  .  When  travelling  by  river,  I  was 
often  asked  to  fill  up  the  time  at  nightfall  and  entertain 
passengers  and  boatmen  by  short  discourses,  just  as  a 
musician  or  actor  crossing  the  Atlantic  is  pressed  to 
favour  the  passengers  with  an  evening  s  entertainment 
I  was  looked  upon  as  a  purveyor  of  pious  diversions.  .  .  • 
We  had  anchored  for  the  night,  and  the  boatmen  having 
eaten  rice  and  washed,  were  seated  in  a  jovial  circle 
with  faces  slightly  reddened  with  samskoo.  *  Come  and 
sit  down  amongst  us,'  exclaimed  a  boisterous,  good- 
humoured  member  of  the  crew,  'and  tell  us  a  few  lies  to 
pass  the  time.'  He  had  not  the  slightest  sense  of  the 
offence  of  the  word,  and  had  looked  upon  the  Gospel 
narratives  as  fables  with  a  purpose."* 

''Betting  finds  its  way  into  the  preaching-halls, 
and  the  missionary  is  sometimes  made  an  unconscious 
abettor  of  its  acts.  A  youth  who  had  purchased  a 
Scripture  portion  at  a  book  depdt  came  up  and  asked 
me  to  tell  him  the  pronunciation  of  two  somewhat 
difficult  characters  in  one  of  the  chapters.  After  he  had 
got  the  necessary  information  he  went  back  to  his  seat, 
and  entered  into  a  furious  quarrel  with  his  neighbour. 
They  had  a  bet  on  about  the  pronunciation  of  the  two 
characters.  I  had  been  the  innocent  referee,  and  the 
quarrel  concerned  the  payment  of  the  stakes."* 

Even  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  can  suggest  diffi- 
culties it  would  seem.  "A  preacher  spoke  of  Providence 
and  its  care  for  the  birds,  '  who  neither  sow  nor  gather 
into  barns.'  '  No,'  said  a  sharp  hearer,  with  a  gift  for 
repartee,  who  had  acknowledged  that  his  great  snare 
was  gambling,  'but  they  steal;  and  dice,  cards,  and 
lotteries  are  not  half  so  bad.  I  can  have  faith  if  I  help 
Providence  to  feed  me  by  tricks  less  vicious  than  the 
thieving  of  the  birds.'"* 

"One  thing  I  have  observed,"  remarks  Mr  James, 
"is  that  while  the  Roman  Catholics  adorn  schools  or 

^  Chinamen  atHome^  1900^  Thomas  G.  Selby,  p.  201. 

>  Ibid.^  pp.  234-5.         3  Ibid.^  pp.  241-2.  «  Ibid^  p.  241. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  101 

places  of  worship  with  pictures  of  oqr  Saviour,  the 
Virgin  Mary,  the  Crucifixion,  and  scenes  from  the  New 
Testament,  Protestant  Missionaries,  no  doubt  from  the 
best  motives,  most  frequently  display  pictures  from  the 
Old  Testament ;  stories  such  as  the  history  of  Joseph, 
or  Daniel  in  the  lion's  den,  or  the  naming  of  the  beasts 
by  Adam,  or  the  Ark  sailing  over  the  Flood.  The  point 
is  not  one  of  importance,  but  seeing  that  the  main  object 
of  missionaries  is  to  teach  the  history  of  our  Lord,  and 
the  work  He  did  for  mankind,  surely  Roman  Catholics 
in  this  matter  are  the  more  sensible  of  the  two."^ 

The  late  Mr  Alexander  Michie  felt  the  same 
difficulty.  **  How  little  some  of  the  missionaries  feel 
the  need  of  smoothing  down  the  less  digestible  portions 
of  the  Old  Testament  may  be  seen  from  their  selecting 
some  of  the  hardest  passages  for  special  advertisement. 
Their  tracts,  for  example,  which  are  intended  to  be  read 
by  Chinese  who  have  never  heard  a  foreigner's  voice,  are 
coarsely  illustrated  by  such  scenes  as  Jonah  being 
swallowed  by  the  great  fish,  and  Jael  in  the  act  of 
driving  her  tent-peg  through  the  temples  of  her  sleeping 
guest."  The  first,  Mr  Michie  thinks,  presents  no 
difficulty  to  the  imagination  of  an  Oriental  people, 
"nor  is  the  treachery  of  Jael  calculated  to  shock 
Chinese  notions  of  honest  reprisal.  But  whether 
Christianity  is  much  assisted  by  such  rough  forms  of 
introduction  is  quite  another  question."^ 

Once  more  Mr  Selby.  At  Fatshan,  so  he  tells  us, 
service  was  conducted  by  a  Chinese  catechist  who 
"was  fluent,  plausible,  and  possessed  the  faculty  of 
personal  magnetism ;  but  he  had  not  a  high  conception 
of  the  Spiritual  genius  of  Christianity."  After  teaching 
and  distribution  of  books  for  a  time,  he  enrolled  the 
names  of  some  proposed  converts,  and  asked  a  Canton 
missionary  to  go  over   to  receive   them.      "Against 

1  The   Long  White   Mountain^  A   Journey   in   Manchuria^    1888, 
H«  £.  M.  James,  p.  378. 

'  Mimimaries  in  China^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  pp.  65-6. 


102         THE  CATfiOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

each  name  were  varying  numbers  of  dots  and  circles. 
Candidate  No.  i  had  attended  five  times,  and  knew 
the  story  of  Adam  and  Eve.  Candidate  No.  2  had 
been  nine  times,  and  took  great  delight  in  the  history 
of  Joseph  in  Egypt.  Candidate  No.  3  had  been  seven 
times,  and  had  familiarised  himself  with  the  career  of 
Daniel  and  the  deliverance  of  the  three  Hebrew 
vegetarians.  The  missionary  of  course  felt  that  his 
catechist  was  on  wrong  lines,  and  had  only  a  vague 
sense  of  the  evangelical  change  required  from  the  man 
who  confesses  Christ  by  baptism."*  Also: — "Native 
preachers  are  fond  of  taking  Old  Testament  subjects, 
and  shaping  them  into  allegories,  and  one  day  the 
subject  of  the  address  had  been  the  Cities  of  Refuge. 
A  man,  who  had  listened  with  apparent  interest,  wished 
to  know  the  names  of  those  cities,  and  the  native 
preacher  turned  to  the  Book  of  Joshua  and  gave  the 
list.  *  But  when  a  man  had  fled  from  the  Avenger  of 
Blood,  and  got  to  one  of  those  cities,  what  about  his 
rice  ?  He  might  as  well  save  himself  the  run,  and  die 
by  the  hand  of  the  Avenger,  as  rush  into  the  city,  and 
die  by  slow  starvation. '  From  any  point  of  the  exegetical 
compass,  a  Chinaman  can  find  his  way  up  to  the  great 
rice  problem."* 

This  attachment  to  the  Old  Testament  would  not 
appear  to  be  peculiar  to  the  Chinese.  At  the  siege  of 
the  European  Legations  in  Peking  by  the  Boxers  in 
1900 — where,  unquestionably,  any  day  might  have  been 
the  last  for  the  defenders,  we  learn  from  Deaconess 
Ransomethat,  on  nth  June,  "Mr  Allen  began  to-day 
to  give  us  a  series  of  lectures  on  the  Minor  Prophets, 
which  are  most  interesting  and  delightful,  and  which 
I  have  long  wanted.  But  it  does  seem  so  strange  to 
have  waited  for  them  until  we  are  in  this  pass."  ' 

^  Chinamen  at  Home^  1900,  Thomas  G.  Sdby  (twelve  years  a  mission- 
ary in  China),  pp.  198-9.  '  IHcL^  p.  240. 

'  Story  of  the  Siege  Hosfdtal  in  Peking^  1901,  Jessie  Ransome 
(Deaconess),  pp.  J1-2. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  103 

There  is  a  more  serious  side  to  this  question  of 
universal    Bible   study  in  China  referred   to   by  Mr 
Michie  thus :— "  Men  of  a  strangle  race,  predisposed 
to  be  hostile,  and  not  over-nice  in  their  imaginations, 
were  not  at  all  certain  to  find  edification  "  in  the  Bible.* 
Certainly,  as  far  as  the  South  is  concerned,  the  poorer 
classes  are  not  too  nice  in  their  ideas,  teste  Rev.  B.  C. 
Henry,  who  worked  amongf  them  for  ten  years : — "  The 
conversation  of  the  poorer  classes  especially  is  some- 
thing too  vile  and   horrible   to   think  of.      It  seems 
perfectly  inconceivable  that  people,  however  degraded, 
coild  bring  their  lips  to  repeat  such  language  as  falls 
incessantly  from  their  tongues.     If  the  conversation 
that  Lot  was  compelled  to  listen  to  in  Sodom  was 
anyth'jig  like  that  which   greets    the   ear   in   China, 
he   certainly   deserved    profoundest    commiseration."* 
"What,"  pursues  Mr  Michie,  "is  an  educated  heathen 
likely  to  nake  of  .  .  .  the  miraculous  birth,  as  presented 
to  him  fox  the  first  time  in  the  New  Testament  ?    What 
the  ChinesF*  literati  do  make  of  it  the  missionaries  know 
very  well,  aid  have  known  for  a  long  time,  though  few 
dare  speak  cut."* 

'*  It  so  happens  that,  impure  as  the  Chinese  imag- 
ination may  be,  the  whole  body  of  their  classical 
literature  does  not  contain  a  single  passage  which  needs 
to  be  slurred  tver  or  explained  away,  and  which  may 
not  be  read  h  its  full  natural  sense  by  youth  or 
maiden."  *  Ana  concerning  the  "  Book  of  Odes  " — one 
of  the  classics — ^ve  are  assured  by  Captain  Brinkley  that 
"several  of  them  deal  with  love,  but  not  one  contains 
an  immodest  worl,  and  if  they  show  that  the  beauties 
of  Nature  and  tht  tyranny  of  the  tender  passion  were 
fully  appreciated  br  China's  ancient  poets,  they  show 
also  that  female  vrtue,  piety,  and  moral  sentiments 

^  Missionaries  in  Clkui^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  661 
>  The  Cross  and  the  ^agon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  p.  59. 
'  Missionaries  in  Chin^  p.  66. 
*  Ibid^  p.  67. 


104         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

received  high  esteem  from  the  fathers  of  the  Chinese 
race."^ 

Hence  Mr  Michie  remarks  once  more :  "To  people 
nurtured  on  a  literature  so  immaculate  in  these  respects, 
there  are  things  in  the  Bible  which  are  calculated  to 
create  a  prejudice  against  its  teaching  even  in  well- 
disposed  minds."* 

At  the  Missionary  Conference  of  1890,  Rev.  J.  N. 
B.  Smith,  referring  to  ''placards  in  which  passages  from 
the  Scriptures  are  quoted  and  attention  called  to  thfi 
immorality  of  Christianity,"  said  that  he  had  seen  in 
Shanghai  "a  book  in  which  apparently  every  passage 
in  the  English  Bible  which  could  by  any  possibility  be 
twisted  to  convey  an  immoral  idea  was  either  quotid  or 
referred  to,"  but  "such  facts  only  prove  that  the  carnal 
mind  is  enmity  against  God."*  At  the  same  gathering 
Rev.  Timothy  Richard  asked: — "Who  can  give  any 
proof  that  the  story  of  Lot,  the  Song  of  Solonon,  and 
other  parts  of  the  Old  Testament  were  ever  neant  for 
general  distribution  among  Chinamen  befori  they  can 
be  converted  to  a  religion  that  supersede<f  Judaism? 
It  is  certain  that  unwise  distribution  of  stch  parts  of 
Scripture  Aave  given  rise  to  abominable  scandal  and 
fierce  persecution.  A  wide  circulation  of  this  kind  of 
literature  is  not  anything  to  be  proud  of."' 

And  five  years  afterwards  Mr  Nornan  found  that 
"up  to  the  present,  the  Protestant  missionaries  have 
circulated  the  whole  Bible  in  Chinese.  They  have 
recently  seen  their  error,  and  are  now  considering  the 
advisability  of  following  the  steps  of  tie  more  circum- 
spect Roman  Catholics,  and  withhoUing  certain  parts 
obviously  unfit  for  Oriental  compiehension.  Their 
failure  to  do  this  hitherto,  has  resuted  in  parodies  of 

1  CAinOj  lis  History^  Arts^  and  Literature^  9^4,  Captain  F.  Brinkley, 
voL  xL,  p.  216. 

'  Missionaries  in  China^  p.  67. 

'  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890^  f  13^ 

*  Ibid,^  pp.  412-3. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  105 

the  most  vital  doctrines  of  orthodox  Protestantism 
being  spread  all  over  China,  of  a  brutality  so  revolting 
as  to  be  beyond  all  possibility  of  mention."^ 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  indiscriminate 
circulation  of  the  Bible,  aided  by  the  ''inalienable  right 
of  private  interpretation  "  thereof,  is  capable  of  producing 
the  most  disastrous  material  results.  Of  such  a  nature 
was  the  T'ai  P'ing  Rebellion,  which  cost  millions  of 
Chinese  lives  and  devastated  entire  districts.  Rev.  Dr 
Edkins,  a  Protestant  missionary,  tells  us  that,  according 
to  the  testimony  of  a  "sincere  and  simple-minded 
Christian  ...  a  cousin  to  Tae-ping-wang,  the  rebel 
leader  .  .  .  there  can  be  no  reasonable  doubt  that  this 
insurrection  began  in  strong  religious  impressions 
derived  from  reading  the  Scriptures  and  tracts 
published  by  Protestant  missionaries,  and  Protestant 
native  converts.*  .  .  .  That  Tae-ping-wang  should  have 
put  forward  pretensions  to  be  the  brother  of  Jesus 
Christ  is  much  to  be  deplored*  .  .  .  We  also  see  in 
this  movement  the  effect  of  the  distribution  in  that 
country  of  Bibles  and  Christian  tracts.  A  reading 
population,  such  as  there  exists,  can  receive  the  know- 
ledge of  Christianity  in  this  way  without  the  presence 
of  a  living  teacher.  They  have  reprinted  some  Christian 
treatises  with  slight  alterations,  and  composed  others 
modelled  on  those  prepared  by  foreigners."* 

"In  regard  to  the  insurgents,"  wrote  Mr  George 
Smith  on  22nd  November  1859,  "so  little  is  known  of 
them,  that  it  would  be  difficult  to  form  a  decided  opinion, 
but  we  may  safely  say  that  a  body  of  men,  comprising 
millions  of  people,  whose  religion  is  in  opposition  to 
every  form  of  idolatry.  Papal  or  Pagan,  and  who  make 
the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament  the 
standard  of  their  teaching,  and  whose  own  compositions, 
whether  prayers  or  hymns,  contain  so  much  saving  truth, 

^  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  Bast^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  p.  306. 
*  Religion  in  China  (Second  EditionX  1878,  Joseph  Edkins,  D.D., 
p.  189.  ^IbicL^  p.  191.  ^IbitL^  p.  194. 


106         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

and  who  for  years  have  maintained  their  place  in  the  heart 
of  the  Chinese  Empire,  and  seem  now  more  consolidated 
than  ever ;  we  may  safely  say  that  such  a  body  of  men 
has  a  very  important  part  to  play  in  the  purposes  of 
Him  Whose  Kingdom  is  to  fill  the  whole  earth."  * 

In  1863,  Dr  Edkins  visited  Nankin?  and  wrote  as 
follows  : — "The  Taipings  rule  the  country  despotically. 
Unable  to  obtain  the  goodwill  of  the  people  they  are 
obliged  to  obtain  their  services  by  force.  In  addition  to 
the  practice  of  forced  and  unpaid  labour,  there  is  the 
further  ill  of  frequent  foraging  raids  by  bodies  of  men 
from  the  garrisons.  The  poor  victims  only  can  know 
the  extent  of  wrong  and  misery  inflicted  on  these  occa- 
sions. Such  a  mode  of  carrying  on  a  war  must  have  a 
demoralising  effect  on  those  who  engage  in  it,  and  it  is  an 
exceedingly  painful  reflection  that,  having  among  them 
our  Bible  and  some  portions  of  our  Christianity,  there 
should  be  no  more  check  on  these  evils  than  that  which 
is  found  to  exist.  The  Taiping  chiefs  often  make 
examples  of  the  worst  of  their  followers,  decapitating 
them,  or  condemning  them  to  wear  the  cangue,  for  the 
crimes  of  robbery  and  incendiarism.  But  such 
instances  of  just  severity  do  not  suffice  to  restrain  from 
various  atrocities  a  vast  number  of  unprincipled  men 
who  follow  the  Taiping  banner  to  be  free  from  the 
obligation  of  honest  labour."* 

"Hung  Sew-tsuen,  the  recognised  leader  of  the 
rebellion,"  we  learn  from  Archdeacon  Moule,  "received 
from  Leang  A-fah,  Morrison's  faithful,  estimable,  but 
poorly  educated  convert,  some  books  and  tracts  of  his 
own  compilation.  .  .  .  These  books  he  laid  aside  for 
some  years.  In  1837  (four  years  later)  ...  he  fell  ill  for 
forty  days,  and  saw  visions  which  were  ever  after 
quoted   as   the   cause   and  explanation  of  the  great 

*  Glimpses  of  Mission  Work  in  ChinOy  i860.  In  section  "Tai  Pings," 
Geo.  Smith,  p.  56. 

>  Chinese  Scenes  and  People^  1863,  Jane  R.  Edkins.  In  section  by 
Rev.  J.  Edkins,  p.  304. 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CHINESE  107 

rebellion.  .  .  .  The  war  of  1842  opened  the  eyes  of 
Hung  Sew-tsuen  to  the  power  of  the  strange  foreigners 
whom  he  had  seen  in  Canton.  He  bethought  himself  of 
his  long  neglected  books ;  and  studying  them,  he  seemed 
to  find  a  confirmation  of  his  visions  in  their  pages."  ^ 

Once  more:  "There  is  no  doubt  that  the  leader  of 
the  T'ai  P'ing  rebels  taught  his  followers  certain 
preposterous  and  fanatical  doctrines,  together  with 
much  that  was  noble  and  true.  He  proclaimed  himself 
a  younger  son  of  God,  and  the  equal  brother  of  Jesus 
Christ !  This  was  no  doubt  to  give  his  person  a  com- 
manding sanctity  in  the  eyes  of  his  followers.  At  the 
same  time  he  refused  to  tolerate  idolatry,  and  exhorted 
the  people  to  give  up  their  superstitions  and  worship 
the  heavenly  Father.  It  has  been  truly  pointed  out 
that  this  extraordinary  movement,  which  shook  the 
Enipire  to  its  core,  and  by  the  upheaval  of  old  religions 
has  done  more  than  anything  else  to  prepare  the 
Chinese  mind  for  the  reception  of  Divine  Truth,  had 
its  germ  in  the  writing  of  a  Chinese  convert."* 

Consequently,  as  Archdeacon  Moule  remarks,  "It 
does  not  surprise  us  to  find  San-ko-lin-sin  in  1858,  and 
the  Governor  of  Kiangsi  in  i860,  memorialising  against 
Christianity,  and  placarding  it  as  revolutionary  and  in 
league  with  the  rebels."*  "The  Catholic  Missions 
were  adverse  to  the  rebellion  from  first  to  last,"  Mr 
Michie  tells  us.  * 

Finally,  in  1891,  the  same  gentleman  records  that 
the  "  more  thoughtful  heads  "  had  evidently  learned  a 
lesson  from  the  fact  that  "the  foulest  attacks  made 
against  Christianity  by  the  Chinese  literati  are  loaded 
to  the  muzzle  with  missiles  from  the  Bible."* 

*  Personal  Recollections  of  the  Tai  Fing  Rebellion^  1898,  Yen.  Arch- 
deacon Moule,  p.  2. 

<  The  Story  of  the  London  Missionary  Society^  1795-1S95,  1894,  C. 
Silvester  Home,  M.A.,  pp.  317-8. 

5  Personal  Recollections  of  the  TaiFing  Rebellion^  p.  25. 
^  China  and  Christianity^  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  95. 

*  Missionaries  in  Ckina^  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  65. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY 

Though  it  cannot  be  proved  that  the  fact  of  a  married 
clergy  has  retarded  the  progress  of  Christianity  among 
the  heathen — except  in  so  far  as  a  Faith,  nominally 
one,  possessing  diametrically  opposite  practices  may 
have  done — nevertheless,  since,  on  no  point  of  discipline 
has  the  Catholic  Church  been  more  fiercely  attacked 
than  on  this  one,  it  seems  proper  to  consider  the  ques- 
tion here.  The  testimony  will,  as  usual,  be  entirely 
from  non-Catholic  sources. 

The  opinion  expressed  by  St  Paul  respecting  matri- 
mony gathers  additional  force  in  the  case  of  a  Christian 
missionary.  Not  only  is  the  unmarried  man  or  woman 
"solicitous  for  the  things  that  belong  to  the  Lord," 
but  the  married  couple  are  solicitous  for  the  things  of 
the  world,  and  to  please  one  another;  and  the  mis- 
sionary "is  divided."^ 

As  if  to  corroborate  the  Apostle's  opinion,  and  show 
that  it  applies  with  as  much  force  to  the  nineteenth 
century  as  to  the  first,  two  witnesses  have  recorded 
their  own  experience  in  the  matter. 

The  first  is  a  gentleman,  formerly  an  official  in  India. 
"  I  spent  ten  years  entirely  alone,  or  with  one  or  two  celi- 
bate companions,  in  the  midst  of  the  people  over  whose 
secular  interests  I  had  to  watch.  I  remember  how 
greatly  the  work  was  advanced  by  entire  freedom  from 
family  and  social  duties  and  cares,  how  subjects  of 
doubt  could   be  discussed  earnestly  and   thoroughly, 

*  I  Cor.  viL  32-3-4. 
w 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  109 

how  before  the  dawn  I  was  in  the  saddle  surrounded  by 
the  natives  who  came  to  accompany  me,  how  my  heart 
went  out  to  them  because  they  were  the  sole  objects  of 
my  interest  [italics  his] :  if  such  were  the  case  in  Com- 
munity-life, or  solitary  life,  while  employed  on  earthly 
business,  how  much  more,  when  the  heart  is  sfiven  to 
Spiritual  business  by  spiritually  minded  men!"^  A 
Vicar-Apostolic  could  neither  have  said  more,  nor  said 
better. 

The  second  is  a  lady,  of  the  China  Inland  Mission 
who,  making  comparisons  with  Buddhism,  inveisfhs 
heartily  against  everything  Catholic,  "including  the 
sacred  sect  of  shaven  celibates,  cut  off  from  all  natural 
affection  and  human  ties."*  She — as  such  writers  are 
apt  to  do — evidently  forgot  that  she  had  previously 
told  us  that,  **  having  no  household  cares  or  responsi- 
bilities, we  are  free  to  give  all  our  time  and  strength  to 
work  and  study,  and  can  go  or  come  as  we  like,  remain- 
ing a  night  or  two  in  any  hamlet  or  town  to  which  we 
may  be  invited."*  St  Pauls  opinion,  precisely!  they 
were  unmarried,  and,  consequently,  "  solicitous  for  the 
things  that  belong  to  the  Lord" — which  things,  be  it 
observed,  were  the  only  things  that  brought  them  to 
China. 

On  the  other  hand  is  abundant  testimony  to  the 
contrary,  e.e-y  "  The  Protestant  does  not  go  out  like  the 
Roman  Catholic,  detached  from  all  bonds  of  country, 
society,  and  family — a  member  only  of  an  Order,  bound 
by  no  higher,  perhaps  no  other,  allegiance  than  that  to 
his  Church.  ...  If  the  missionary  requires  to  be 
orientalised  in  order  to  be  successful,  then  the  Protes- 
tant ideal  of  missions  must  be  given  up,  and  the 
missionary  must  become  a  celibate.  The  family 
cannot  be  torn  from  its  roots  in  Western  civilisation. 
The  missionary  occupation  is  not  hereditary.  The 
children  belong  to  the  West  and  should  return  to  the 

1  The  Gospel  Message^  1896,  Robert  Needham  Cust,  LL.D.,  p.  85. 
<  In  the  Far  East^  1889,  Genddine  Guinness,  p.  189. 
'  Ibid.^  p.  103. 


110         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

West.  They  simply  cannot  be  brought  up  on  the 
mission  field."  ^  In  a  paper  read  before  the  Peking 
Missionary  Association  ( 1 7th  December  1 888)  on  "  How 
to  become  a  missionary  and  convert  no  one,"  Rev. 
Chauncey  Goodrich  mentions  being  "  busy  about  many 
things,  settling  in  new  home,  distractions  of  house- 
keeping, etc."  *  Mrs  Stuart  told  a  Shanghai  Conference 
of  "the  earnestness  and  enthusiasm  of  the  young 
missionary,  of  how  her  household  cares  gradually 
throng  upon  her,  until  it  seems  as  if  time  for  possible 
service  is  quite  swallowed  up."*  And  a  reverend  but 
ungallant  gentleman,  after  remarking  that  the  physical 
appearance  of  the  lady  missionaries  *'did  not  impress 
me,"  adds  : — "  True,  those  who  select  female  missionaries 
are  on  the  horns  of  a  dilemma.  Well-favoured  girls 
marry  and  leave  the  business."* 

The  question  assumes  special  importance  in  China, 
the  inhabitants  of  which,  according  to  Professor  Parker, 
**  cannot  conceive  any  priesthood  apart  from  celibacy. 
.  .  .  The  religious  feeling  in  the  vast  empire  of  China 
varies  as  much  from  province  to  province  as  it  does  in 
Europe ;  yet  everywhere  the  Catholic  method  appeals 
more  readily  than  the  Protestant  to  the  Chinese  view  of 
what  is  right.  "'^ 

That  the  Professor  did  not  speak  without  knowledge 
is  clear  from  the  impressions  of  a  Chinese  who  travelled 
abroad,  and  wrote  an  account  of  what  he  saw  for  the 
benefit  of  his  countrymen.  From  him  we  learn  that : — 
**  Fuh-pin  was  a  native  of  Cheang-p  06,  in  the  prefecture 
of  Cheang-chew ;  and  became  officiating  priest  in  the 
temple  at  Samarang.  He  could  write  a  good  hand,  and 
talk  very  glibly,  but  he  publicly  married  a  wife,  and 

»  Modem  Missions  in  the  East,  1895,  Edward  A.  Lawrence,  D.D., 
pp.  201-2. 

«  The  Chinese  Recorder  and  Missionofy  Journal,  June  1889,  p.  254. 
»  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference,  1890,  p.  512. 

*  John  Chinaman  at  Borne,  1905,  Rev.  E.  J.  Hardy,  M.A.,  Chaplain  to 
the  Forces,  p.  309. 

*  China  past  and  present,  1903,  Professor  E.  H.  Parker,  pp.  95-6. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  111 

brought  up  a  family  of  children,  to  which  was  added  an 
establishment  of  men-servants  and  maid-servants ;  so 
that  when  a  guest  arrived,  he  used  to  call  his  slave-girl 
to  boil  the  tea;  most  ridiculous  truly!  For  it  appears 
that  priests  in  foreign  parts  have  wives  and  concubines, 
which  is  there  thought  to  be  nothing  remarkable. 
However,  I  could  not  help  composing  a  verse  to  expose 
the  priest  Fuh-pin,  as  follows : — 

I  have  heard  it  reported  a  hermit  dwells  here, 
Who  joins  with  the  worldling  in  making  good  cheer  ; 
His  surplice  is  worked  in  the  female  arcade, 
And  to  boil  us  some  tea,  he  calls  out  his  maid." ' 

Mr  Consul  Medhurst  expresses  practically  the  same 
views  as  Professor  Parker.  As  regards  their  married 
condition,  "I  am  not  by  any  means  prepared  to 
condemn  it,  or  to  advocate  celibacy  as  a  rule,  for  I  know 
of  many  devoted  couples  whose  united  and  energetic 
efforts  have  been  productive  of  great  good.  At  the 
same  time  I  venture  to  think  that  a  man  or  woman 
labouring  single-handed  must  of  necessity  prove  a  more 
effective  missionary  as  far  as  China  is  concerned,  for 
not  only  is  increased  leisure  afforded  for  undivided 
attention  to  the  work,  but  more  opportunity  and 
freedom  are  given  for  complete  disassociation  from 
foreign  surroundings,  and  a  thorough  seclusion  among 
the  natives ;  and  there  is,  moreover,  a  greater  likelihood 
of  earning  the  goodwill  and  respect  of  the  Chinese,  in 
whose  eyes  celibacy  constitutes  an  important  element 
of  self-sacrifice."*  *"A  priest,'  said  the  Chinaman, 
'and  yet  married!*"*  And  the  reputation  of  being 
'  very  much  married '  saved  a  Protestant  missionary's 
life.  In  the  Boxer  Rising  Mr  Green  was  captured  by 
the  Boxers,  while  travelling  with  his  wife  and  a  lady 

1  T^  Chinaman  Abroad^  1849,  Ong-Tae-Hae  (translated  by  W.  H. 
Medhurst,  D.D.),  p.  27. 

»  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathe^^  1872,  W.  H.  Medhurs^  p.  36. 
*  The  Chinese  as  ihey  onr,  1843,  G*  Tadescant  Lay,  p.  68. 


112         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

missionary :  *'  I  could  not  be  a  Romanist  priest,"  they 
said,  *' because  I  had  two  wives  (!)  and  children."^ 

In  1896,  the  late  Mrs  Bishop  wrote  to  Miss  Cullen 
from  China : — "  I  daresay  you  think  I  say  too  little 
about  missions.  There  are  many  problems  connected 
with  them,  which  s^row  in  difficulty  as  missions  spread 
and  increase.  The  one  which  specially  afflicts  me  is  the 
waste  of  working:  power,  and  the  scandal  among:  natives 
caused  by  the  ceaseless  marryingrs  and  maternities  of 
missionary  women  makingf  an  end  of  work ;  and  not 
only  this,  but  that  in  inland  China  many  of  the  best  of 
the  single  women  have  much  of  their  time  occupied 
nursing  the  mothers  five  and  six  months  after  each 
baby  is  brought  into  the  world.  In  one  small  mission, 
two  ladies  came  out  four  years  ago,  and  one  three 
years  ago,  each  giving  up  useful  homework.  Each  tells 
me  she  has  never  had  time  to  begin  Chinese  with  a 
teacher,  far  less  mission-work,  owing  to  these  babies. 
Do  people  at  home,  they  ask,  contribute  to  send  out 
monthly  nurses,  who  must  remain  so  for  four  to  six 
months  at  a  time — or  missionaries  ?  There  are  various 
reforms  absolutely  necessary,  and  none  know  it  better 
than  the  missionaries  themselves,  but  anyone  suggesting 
them  would  be  thought  an  enemy.  The  missionary 
army  as  represented  on  paper  has  perhaps  an  effective 
strength  of  one-half  My  inquiries  are  most  carefully 
made  and  solely  among  missionaries."^ 

Mr  Arnot  Reid  found  that  the  Protestant  mission- 
aries at  Kalgan  had  tried  to  live  among  the  Chinese, 
but  failed,  because  for  them  it  was  impossible.  ''Only 
the  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  can  do  that,  and  they 
can  do  it  partly  because  they  are  celibate,  and  partly 
because  if  they  die  there  are  more  priests  to  follow  and 
carry  on  the  work.  But  a  Protestant  missionary,  with 
perhaps  a  wife  and  a  couple  of  children,  cannot  live  the 

>  In  Dtaths  Oft,  1901,  C.  H.  S.  Green,  p.  52. 

'  Life  of  Isabella  Bird  (Mrs  Bishop),  1906,  Anna  M.  Stoddart,  pp. 
319-20. 


MARtllAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  11$ 

life  of  a  Chinatown,  and  if  he  persisted  in  attempting  to 
do  so,  he  ought  to  incur  much  disapproval  for  unneces- 
sarily sacrificing  the  interests  of  his  wife  and  children."* 
"  He  is  divided,"  St  Paul  would  have  said. 

On  5th  August  1861,  a  missionary's  wife  wrote  to 
her  mother:  "Mr  Edkins  had  now  to  make  up  his 
mind  on  the  subject.  On  the  one  hand  the  newly 
entered-on  mission-field  here,  with  his  large  daily 
audiences  and  several  inquirers;  then  on  the  other 
hand  his  sick  wife."*  To  his  honour  be  it  said,  the 
missionary  did  his  duty. 

*' Indeed,  no  man  with  any  self-respect  should  be 
expected  to  live  in  a  native  house,  the  dirt  and  squalor 
beingalmost  indescribable,"*  says  Hon.  H.  N.  Shore, 
forgetful  of  One  Who  lived  in  a  stable.  Dr  Lawrence 
is  evidently  of  the  same  mind.  *'  What  then,"  he  asks, 
**does  a  Western  home  in  the  East  involve?  It 
involves  not  a  house  like  his  neighbours,  very  often 
not  a  native  house  at  all  .  .  .  the  foreign  mission 
house  should  be  larger,  roomier,  more  comfortable, 
more  permanent  than  the  home  mission  house.  The 
furniture  of  the  West  should  be  there.  He  should  not 
be  expected  to  sit  on  the  floor,  sleep  on  a  mat,  or  eat 
from  a  plate  of  plantain  leaves,  or  with  chopsticks,  or 
with  his  fingers,  though  he  should  be  able  and  ready  to 
do  all  this  when  there  is  occasion.  He  should  have  the 
books,  periodicals,  pictures,  and  musical  instruments  of 
his  own  country.  In  short,  it  should  be  a  little  bit  of 
Europe  or  America  set  right  down  in  a  heathen  land."* 
Mr  Reid  is  more  modest.  '*The  married  Protestant 
missionary,  with  a  wife  and  children,"  he  thinks, 
''requires    a    cottage    and    a    pony-carriage,   or   its 

>  Peking  to  Petersburg^  1897,  Arnot  Reid,  p.  73. 

<  Chinese  Scenes  and  People^  1863,  Jane  R.  Edldns,  p.  234. 

s  The  Flight  of  the  "^Lt^wing,"*  1881,  Hon.   Henry  Noel  Shore, 
R.N.,p.  119. 

^  Modem  Missions  in  the  £ast,  1895,  Edward  A.  Lawrence,  D.D.,  pp. 
205-6. 

H 


114         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

equivalent."^  Curiously  enougfh,  it  is  this  last  item 
that  disturbs  the  equanimity  of  Canon  Taylor.  "The 
pony-carriage  is  obviously  fatal  to  the  missionary's 
influence.  If  St  Paul,  before  starting^  on  one  of  his 
missionary  journeys,  had  required  St  James  and  a 
committee  at  Jerusalem,  to  g^uarantee  him  ;^300  a 
year,  paid  quarterly,  and  had  provided  himself  with  a 
shady  bungalow,  a  punkah,  a  pony-carriage  and  a 
wife,  he  would  not  have  changed  the  history  of  the 
world."* 

'*To  a  theological  student  who  inquired,  'Shall  I 
go  to  the  heathen  married  or  single?'  Dr  Eli  Smith 
replied,  '  By  all  means  married.  Because  a  single  man 
must  depend  on  another  missionary's  wife  for  home 
comforts,  etc.,  which  is  unfair.  Because  the  question 
is  not  whether  he  shall  take  care  of  a  wife,  but  she,  of 
him.  Because  a  single  man  in  the  East  is  looked 
upon  as  corrupt.  Because  women  prove  equal,  if  not 
superior,  to  men  in  Christian  work.  Because  nothing 
more  influences  the  heathen  mind  than  the  exhibition 
of  what  Christianity  does  for  women  and  home  life. '"' 
Canon  Taylor  answers  this,  and  provides  matter  for 
thought  as  well : — 

**  In  favour  of  matrimony  it  is  urged,  i.  That  a 
woman's  influence  is  necessary  for  teaching  girls.  It 
is  replied  that  this  influence  can  be  as  well  or  better 
exercised  through  sisterhoods.  2.  That  missionaries 
feel  lonely  and  want  society.  It  is  replied  that 
brotherhoods  of  men  living  in  community  are  much 
more  efiective  than  isolated  missionaries.  3.  That 
scandals  are  prevented.  It  is  replied  that  the  serious 
lapses  ffom  morality  which  we  have  lately  had  to 
deplore,  have  occurred  not  among  celibates,  but 
among  married  missionaries  and  widowers.    4.   That 

^  Peking  to  Petersburg^  1897,  Arnot  Reid,  p.  79. 
'  ''The  Great  Missionary  Failure''  {Fortnightly  Review^  October 
1888),  Rev.  Canon  Taylor,  p.  498. 

'  The  Modem  Misskmary  Century^  1901,  Arthur  T.  Pierson,  p.  171. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  115 

St  Peter  was  a  married  man.  It  is  replied  that  St 
Paul,  a  much  more  successful  missionary,  was  a 
celibate.  5.  That  celibates  get  restless,  and  come 
home  after  a  few  years.  The  answer  is  that  married 
missionaries  constantly  resign  because  the  climate  does 
not  suit  their  wives,  or  because  the  wives  do  not  wish 
to  be  separated  from  their  children.  With  a  married 
couple  the  chance  of  necessary  resignation  on  the 
ground  of  health  is  obviously  increased.  6.  The  real 
argument  for  married  missionaries  is  not  usually 
avowed.  It  is  that  the  [Church  Missionary]  Society 
cannot  get  the  requisite  number  of  men  without  offering 
the  opportunity  of  early  marriage  as  a  bribe.  The 
reply  is  that  the  Universities  Mission  does  get  men 
who  are  willing  to  go  out  as  celibates.  Therefore  they 
get,  so  to  speak,  the  pick  of  the  missionary  market ; 
they  get  men,  zealous,  devoted,  single-hearted,  free 
from  the  least  suspicion  of  the  taint  of  worldly 
motive.  .  .  .  Doubtless  the  celibacy  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  affords  an  explanation  of  the 
small  cost  at  which  they  are  conducted,  and  probably 
also  of  their  comparative  success."^ 

"It  is  openly  asserted,  and  not  disputed,"  wrote 
the  Hon.  Secretary  to  the  Canterbury  Board  of 
Missions,  "that  many  persons  have  become  mission- 
aries to  enable  them  to  marry  early."*  Indeed,  "one 
missionary  told  me  that  he  married  on  the  very  day 
of  his  Ordination,  and  he  seemed  to  think  he  had  done  a 
clever  thing  in  becoming  Reverendus  et  Benedictus  at  the 
same  time."*  "My  husband,"  Mrs  Nevius  tells  us, 
"regarded  it  as  of  great  importance,  that  young 
missionaries  should,  for  their  first  year,  be  free  from 
housekeeping  and  housebuilding  cares,  and  he  always 
regretted  the  recklessness,  not  to  say  obstinacy,  with 

*  "  Missionary  Finance"  {Fortnightly  Review^  November  1888),  Rev. 
Canon  Taylor,  pp.  588-9. 

*  The  Go^l  Message^  1896,  Robert  Needham  Cust,  LL.D.,  p.  92. 

*  Ibid.^  p.  87. 


116         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

which,  in  their  inexperience  they  would  sometimes 
assume  these  cares."  ^ 

We  may  here  note  another  difiSculty  specially  affect- 
ing China.  The  late  Mrs  Bishop,  we  are  told,  "urged 
the  inexpediency  of  sending  out^nc^es  to  be  married  at 
once  to  missionaries  in  China,  as  the  young  wife's 
ignorance  of  the  people  subjected  her  to  many  incon- 
veniences, and  interfered  with  her  husband's  efficiency. 
She  thought  that  such  Jlanc^es  should  be  a  year  or  two 
in  China,  living  with  senior  missionaries  to  study  the 
language  and  customs  of  the  land,  before  marriage. 
She  praised  the  arrangement  of  the  China  Inland 
Mission  which  secures  this,  while  recognising  the 
greater  difficulty  experienced  by  the  Church  Missionary 
Society  in  adopting  the  plan,  owing  to  its  missionaries 
being  in  provinces  where  different  languages  and 
dialects  are  spoken,  so  that  a  fiancie  cannot  easily  be 
placed  very  far  distant  from  the  missionary  she  is 
engaged  to,  although  such  distance  is  highly  desirable 
in  view  of  the  Chinese  feeling  of  propriety  with  regard 
to  betrothed  people."  *  It  is,  no  doubt,  in  consequence 
of  this  feeling,  that  the  regulations  of  the  China  Inland 
Mission  contain  a  caution  to  ''engaged  people"  to  be 
guarded  in  their  intercourse.  But,  as  Mr  Gundry 
observes,  "such  matters  are  beyond  printed  rules."* 

And  now,  Dr  Cust — than  whom,  as  a  Secretary  to  a 
Board  of  Missions,  no  one  has  had  a  better  opportunity 
of  observation ;  and  who  has,  moreover,  given  us  the 
result  of  his  own  personal  experience  of  the  advantages 
of  celibacy  in  dealing  with  natives,  even  as  a  layman — 
will  enlighten  us  as  to  how  matrimony  affects  the  work 
of  the  missionary.  Well  does  he  remark : — "  No  one 
but  a  member  of  a  Missionary  Committee  could 
imagine  the  state  of  affairs."* 

^  Life  of  John  Livingstone  Nevius^  1895,  Helen  S.  Coan  Nevius,  p.  136. 
<  The  Life  of  Isabella  Bird  (Mrs  Bishop),  1906,  Anna  M.  Stoddart,  p.  337. 
'  China  present  and  past,  1895,  R.  S.  Gundry,  p.  245. 
*  The  Gospel  Message^  1896^  Robert  Needham  Cust,  LL.D.,  p.  87. 


MAURIA6B  AND  THE  MISSlONAHY  117 

"England,"  says  the  Doctor,  "is  becoming  strewed 
with  '  retumed-empty  bottles,'  men  who  have  turned 
back  from  the  plough,  forgotten  their  first  love  [the 
Missions],  because  their  wives  were  sick.  I  have  heard 
orders  passed  in  Committee  to  send  for  missionaries 
from  distant  stations  in  the  field  to  come  home  to 
England  to  their  sick  wives.  Even  Bishops  are  not 
free  from  this  weakness.  One  Colonial  Bishop  left  his 
duty  because  his  wife  was  sick,  and  another  because 
his  daughter  was  dying.  ...  I  read  of  missionaries 
leaving  their  field  to  visit  a  sick  parent  after  only  two 
years'  absence  ...  of  husbands  leaving  important 
stations,  abandoning  their  flocks,  to  accompany  a  wife 
home  at  the  expense  of  a  Society."  ^ 

"  What  shall  be  thought  of  such  expressions  as  this 

in  a  Missionary  Report  last  year  [1895]?    'Mr  

has  felt  obliged  [italics  his]  to  return  home  for  a 
lengthened  absence  from  the  mission,  as  his  wife's 
health  precluded  her  from  joining  him.'  .  .  .*  I  heard 
a  member  of  a  committee  remark  with  regard  to  an 
agent  of  a  Missionary  Society,  who  had  a  sick  wife  in 
England,  that  it  was  wrong  of  the  committee  not  to 
allow  him  to  come  home  every  year  to  comfort  her, 
arguing  that  the  duties  of  husband  and  wife  were 
paramount  to  the  duty  previously  assumed  [italics  his] 
to  preach  the  Gospel.  If  this  be  conceded,  absolute 
celibacy  must  become  the  condition  of  Mission  Service.* 
...  In  one  Missionary  Periodical  I  read  how  an 
enterprise  to  West  Africa  was  'crowned'  by  the 
marriage  of  two  of  the  missionaries."* 

Instances  of  the  above  are  not  wanting  in  China, 
^.^.,  "  The  ill-health  of  Mrs  W.  and  one  of  her  children, 
compelled  her  to  leave  the  field  in  February  1856. 
Dr  W.  followed  the  next  year.  Mrs  W.'s  health  con- 
tinuing poor  for  some  time,  they  never  returned  to  the 

1  The  Gospel  Message^  1896,  Robert  Needham  Cust,  LL.D.,  p.  86. 

*  IhieL^  P>  90.  '  Ibid,^  p.  92. 

*  /W^  p.  94. 


118         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

field."  ^  In  1859,  Mr  Burns  tells  us,  the  missionary  staff 
at  Foochow  was  much  weakened  by  the  return  home  of 
Mr  and  Mrs  F.  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  on 
account  of  the  bad  health  of  Mrs  F.  "  Mr  F.,"  continues 
Mr  Burns,  **  who  came  out  in  the  beginning  of  1859,  is 
obliged  to  remove  when  he  has  just  become  prepared  to 
be  an  effective  labourer."*    Of  the  French  Protestant 

Mission  we  learn  : — "  So  terrible  a  blow  to  M.  B 

was  the  loss  of  his  young  wife,  that,  almost  heart- 
broken he  left  for  his  home  in  the  South  of  France. 

M.  R ,  unable  to  carry  on  the  work  single-handed, 

grew  despondent,  and  sympathising  so  deeply  with  his 
friend,  decided  to  return  with  him  to  France.  Thus 
ended  the  French  Protestant  Mission  in  Shantung."* 
After  the  riots  in  Chentu  in  1895,  "on  arrival  at  the 
coast,  one  missionary  was  ordered  home  to  Canada 
because  of  his  wife's  nervous  breakdown."*  "By  the 
time  my  dear  child  was  somewhat  recovered,  fresh 
difficulties  arose,  the  state  of  Mrs  C.'s  health  requiring 
her  immediate  return  to  England,  and  that  of  Mr  C. 
The  infant  Church  to  which  he  had  ministered  impera- 
tively called  for  supervision.  Mr  W.  had,  therefore,  to 
leave  the  needy  province  of  Gan-Hwuy  and  give  himself 
to  that  important  work."^ 

To  return  to  Dr  Cust : — "  The  grand  story  of  the 
Gospel  to  the  Heathen  is  interrupted  by  perpetual 
harping  on  the  'wife  and  baby'  theme.  .  ;  .•  In  a 
really  interesting  account  of  the  German  Leper  Asylum 
at  Jerusalem,  and  excellent  remarks  about  the  Spiritual 
state  of  the  poor  sufferers,  we  come  to  this  bathos :  '  On 

*  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  Ckina^  1907,  D.  MacGillivray, 

p.  344. 

*  Glimpses  of  Missionary  Work  in  China^  i860.    Section  by  W.  C. 
Burns,  p.  59. 

^  Shantungs  1891,  Alexander  Armstrong,  F.E.I.S.,  pp.  137-8. 

*  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China,  p.  114. 

^  The   Story  of  the    China   Inland  Mission^   1900,   M.  Geraldine 
Guinness,  vol.  i.,  pp.  414-5. 

*  The  Gospel  Message^  p.  87. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  Il9 

the  Qth  of  February  we  were  rejoiced  with  the  birth  of 
a  little  son,  and  gave  him  the  name  of  John.' ^  .  .  •  The 
birth  and  death  of  a  baby  seems  to  excite  more  interest, 
and  certainly  happens  much  oftener,  than  the  conversion 
of  a  heathen !  We  have  long  accounts  in  some  reports 
of  a  'little  Jack,' sad  words  over  the  death  of  a  'little 
Robbie.'  .  .  .  Think  of  the  scorn  of  the  Atheist,  and  the 
contempt  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Missionary,  at  the 
style  of  .such  notices."  * 

"!  went  with  a  lady  missionary  to  visit  the  mis- 
sionary station  at  Fusan,"  says  Mr  Joseph  Walton, 
M.P.  .  .  .  "We  found  the  missionary  nursing  a  baby, 
his  wife  being  ill.  He  was  much  exercised  in  his  mind 
about  h:s  domestic  affairs,  having  been  robbed  of 
money  on  two  preceding  days  by  his  Korean  servants. 
We  saw  tvo  other  lady  missionaries  there.  I  suggested 
that  as  our  time  was  limited,  and  as  I  was  very  anxious 
to  get  reliaUe  information  from  those  who  view  matters 
from  differen*:  standpoints,  the  missionary  might  perhaps 
stroll  back  wth  me  to  the  landing-place  and  give  me 
further  information,  but  the  situation  of  his  domestic 
affairs  prevenied.  For  the  life  of  me,  I  could  not 
understand  wlv  one  of  the  two  lady  missionaries 
should  not  hav^  taken  the  baby,  and  the  other  been 
placed  for  half  in  hour  on  watch  and  guard  against 
robbers."* 

From  a  missionary  publication  we  extract  the 
following  concerring  the  Persian  Mission: — "Home- 
ward bound.    Diay  of  Rev. of  the  C.M.S.,  1893- 

*  We  left  Julfa  to-dar  for  our  homeward  journey. .  . .  Our 
caravan  consists  of  en  mules,  two  for  my  takht-i-ravan, 
which  somewhat  resembles  a  child's  Noah's  ark  with 
shafts  at  each  end ;  one  mule  for  Fanny's  (my  wife's) 
kajaveh,  which  look,  like  two  huge  dog-kennels  tied 
together,  and  hung  pinnier-wise  over  the  back  of  the 
mule ;  two  mules  for  car  servants  Zachary  and  NicoU ; 

^  The  Gospel  Message^  pp.  '7.8.  *  Ibid.^  p.  88. 

'  China  and  the  Present  Cftis,  1900,  Joseph  Walton,  M.P^  pp.  291-2. 


120         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

two  for  travelling  beds,  provisions,  etc.,  for  the  journey ; 
and  three  for  the  boxes  we  are  taking  home  to  England. 
.   .   .    Baby's  socks  and   the  brush  for  cleaning  her 
bottles  were  lost  last  night,  and  my  medicine  glass 
was  broken;  the  children  had  both  caught  cold,  and 
altogether  the  commencement  of  our  long  journey  was 
rather  a  trying  one.    We  have  begun  to  march  with 
our  whole   caravan,  including   the   four   muleteers — 
Ahmed  Aga,  the  owner  of  the  mules  and  his  assistants, 
Ali  Ackbar,  Kuli,  and  Tukki,  with  their  three  donkeys. 
Douglas  goes  with  me  in  the  takht-i-ravan,  baby  (/sabel) 
seven  months,  with  Fanny  and  three  small  Persian 
kittens,  and  our  two  servants  on  their  mules. ...  At 
Mazzar  we  got  a  very  small  stuffy  little  room  down- 
stairs in  the  Chapar  Khaneh  or  post-house    It  was 
very  dark  and  full  of  flies,  which  was  a  great  trial,  and 
the  thermometer  was  up  to  84° ;  so  we  we^e  not  very 
comfortable,  and  we  were  unable  to  get  nilk  or  eggs. 
We  have  brought  with  us  a  limited  quantity  of  con- 
densed milk  to  make  baby  s  bottles  aid  arrowroot, 
so  that  her  supply  is  assured ;  but  for  our  own  tea, 
etc,  we   are   dependent  on  the  milk  supply  on  the 
road.  .  .  ."^ 

In  considering  the  unnecessary  dinger  to  which 
female  life  and  honour  are  exposed  in  .olitary  advanced 
stations,  '*  which  ought  to  have  been  occupied  by  men 
alone  " ;  and  instancing  the  revolt  agsinst  the  Germans 
in  Eastern  Africa,  in  which  some  o  the  women  were 
incapacitated  for  movement  by  the  sate  of  their  health, 
or  their  babies;  Dr  Cust  asks :-^'' Why  were  they 
there  .^  .  .  .  Why  should  soldiers,  s^nt  out  to  fight  the 
Lord's  battles,  encumber  themselv^  ?  "  * 

This  aspect  of  the  matter  his  been  abundantly 
illustrated  in  China.  Of  the  ri^ts  in  Chengtu  (Sze- 
Chuen)  in  189S1  a  missionary  tUs  us:  "We  beat  an 
orderly  but  hasty  retreat  to  our  lospital  compound  .  .  . 

>  The  Reaper  (January  i^\  p.  7- 
'  The  Gospel  Message^  u  85. 


BIARRIA6E  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  121 

there  we  rejoined  our  wives  and  children  .  .  .  covered 
by  the  darkness,  we  crawled  one  by  one  through  one  of 
the  holes  broken  by  the  stones  of  the  rioters  in  the 
hospital  gates.  The  two  ladies  and  we  three  men, 
carrying  three  children  amongst  us,  ran  along  the 
now  comparatively  quiet  street  to  the  parade  ground. 

Dr s  third  child  was  in  the  hands  of  a  Christian 

nurse,  but  she  became  separated  from  us  on  the 
street.  .  .  .  Some  of  the  rioters  discovered  that  she 
was  carrying  a  foreign  child ;  they  caught  her  by  the 
hair,  and  began  beating  her.  She  dropped  the  child, 
and  managed  to  escape  from  them.  A  few  minutes  later, 
the  hospital  gateman  discovered  a  child  sitting  alone  in 
the  dark  street  and  crying.  .  .  .  Our  only  hope  therefore 
lay  in  concealment,  and  in  a  moment  we  had  darted 
through  an  open  door  and  into  the  back  room  of  a  little 

two-roomed  mat-house.    The  three  ladies,  Mr and 

myself,  besides  three  children  ...  in  all  eight  persons, 
packed  ourselves  into  a  small  Chinese  bed.''^ 

Matters  elsewhere  in  Chengtu  were  no  more  hopeful. 
Thirty-one  foreigners,  all  homeless  and  destitute,  were  in 
the  Prefect's  yamen  [office].  "In  the  midst  of  all  this,  one 
of  the  ladies  was  prematurely  confined.  There  was  a 
plethora  of  medical  assistance  within  the  yamen,  but 
not  a  drug,  not  a  rag,  not  even  a  pin  among  them." 
One  of  the  doctors  sallied  forth,  and  meeting  one  of 
the  rioters,  bought  back  a  bottle  of  carbolic  looted  from 
his  own  hospital.  But  for  this,  in  the  abnormal  heat, 
the  poor  lady  could  noti  have  survived.^ 

"In  189s,  all  the  missionaries  were  driven  out  of 
Chentu,"  another  tells  us.  "No  less  than  thirteen 
little  children  sharing — with  their  parents — in  suffering 
for  the  sake  of  the  Gospel"*      Again:    "The  little 

>  A  History  of  the  Sze-Chuen  Riots  (May,  June  1895},  Alfred 
Cmmingham,  pp.  xxiv.-v.-vi 

<  The  Land  of  the  Blue  Gown^  1902,  Mrs  Archibald  Little,  p.  234. 

'  Life  in  West  China^  1905,  Robert  J.  Davidson  and  Isaac  Mason, 
P-IS7. 


122         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

baby  arrived  'more  dead  than  alive/  early  a  sufferer 
for  the  sake  of  the  Gospel."^  And,  to  finish  with 
Chentu,  here  is  a  piece  of  childish  experience:  "One 
little  girl,  the  daughter  of  a  fellow-missionary  in  the 
city,  was  found  one  day  with  her  pocket  stuffed  full  of 
handkerchiefs.  When  asked  why  she  had  taken  so 
many,  the  child  replied,  *  I  thought  they  would  be  handy 
if  we  had  to  run  again  to  the  yamen  for  safety.* "  * 

A  few  months  later,  Mrs  Bishop,  travelling  in  Sze- 

Chuan,  met  "  Mr  and  Mrs of  the  China  Inland 

Mission  ...  he  very  ill  of  malarial  fever.  They  had 
been  swept  out  of  Chengtu  in  the  riots,  losing  all  their 
possessions,  and  with  this  infant  had  been  moving  for 
seven  months,"  during  which  time  they  had  never  been 
in  one  place  more  than  twelve  days.  ..."  Mr  — —  s 
house  at  Kuan  Hsien  had  just  been  attacked  by 
burglars,  and  between  the  terror  caused  by  this,  and 
the  hostile  cries  in  the  streets,  which  they  understood 
too  well,  his  delicate,  sensitive  young  daughters,  one  of 
them  twelve  years  old,  had  become  so  thoroughly 
nervous,  that  the  only  possible  cure  was  to  take  them 
home.  I  saw  several  ladies  in  Western  China  who, 
after  escaping  from  mobs  with  their  young  children, 
were  affected  in  the  same  way."' 

From  Fuh-kien,  in  the  same  year,  we  learn : — "The 
late  Rev.  and  Mrs  Stewart  s  baby,  thirteen  months  old, 
whose  skull  was  fractured  during  the  recent  massacre 
of  English  missionaries  at  Kucheng,  has  succumbed 
to  the  frightful  injuries  he  received  at  the  hands  of  the 
mob,  and  will  be  buried  in  the  cemetery  at  the  port  this 
evening.  Miss  Mildred  Stewart,  aged  twelve,  is  in  a 
very  critical  condition."  The  Stewart  family  comprised, 
besides  the  parents,  six  children.  The  father,  mother, 
and  one  daughter  were  killed  outright ;  the  baby  done 

>  Life  in  West  China^  1905,  Robert  J.  Davidson  and  Isaac  Mason, 
p.  171.  2  2bid.^  p.  176. 

3  The  Yangtze  Vall^  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop^  F.R.G.S.» 
pp.  323-4. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  123 

to  death  as  related  above;  a  boy  of  six  died  thirty 
hours  later  of  injuries  received;  the  remainingf  three 
were  more  or  less  badly  hurt;  while  the  nurse  was 
burned  to  death  in  the  house.  ^ 

At  Fen-chow  Fu,  during  the  Boxer  Rising,  "the 
Governor  of  Shansi  sent  orders  to  expel  the  foreigners. 

.  .  .  Mrs  A was  about  to  be  confined,  and  the 

missionaries  asked  that  their  departure  might  be 
postponed  on  this  account,  but  the  request  was 
refused."  The  missionaries  were  killed  by  the  Chinese 
guard.-  Sundry  other  cases  are  on  record  at  the  time 
of  this  Rising,  where  ladies  were  expecting  their 
confinement.* 

In  the  face  of  such  experience  as  this,  and  much 
more,  the  most  ardent  advocate  of  a  married  Missionary 
Service  might  be  expected  to  agree  with  Dr  Cust 
that  "it  is  all  nonsense  to  say  that  the  presence  of 
children  in  missionary  work  aids  the  prosecution  of 
the  work  of  evangelisation.  One  enthusiastic  mission- 
ary's wife  tells  us  that  peace  was  immediately  made 
betwixt  belligerent  natives  at  the  sight  of  a  mother 
and  her  baby.  If  that  were  the  case,  we  should  have 
to  go  to  the  other  extreme,  and  rule  that  no  unmarried 
missionaries,  or  barren  wives  of  missionaries,  or  mission- 
aries whose  families  are  grown  up,  should  be  allowed."^ 

China,  as  usual,  affords  us  examples  of  theory  and 
practice.  Says  Miss  Williams: — "Many  of  our 
numbers  came  in  to  see  the  'foreign  babies.'  I  am 
sure  the  little  ones  help  to  break  down  any  prejudice 
which  the  people  may  have  against  us,  and  create  a 
feeling  of  friendliness  among  them."^    Says  an  official 

^  The  Kucheng  Massacre^  1895,  Hang  Kong  Telegraph  Office,  pp.  i 
and  3. 

'  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (5),  1901,  p.  37. 

'  Fire  and  Sword  in  Shansi^  1903,  E.  H.  Edwards,  M.B.,  CM.,  pp. 

88,  93,  105,  106. 

«  The  Gospel  Message^  p.  86. 

^  A  New  Thing  (Incidents  of  Missionary  Life  in  China),  1895,  Miss 
F.  M.  Williams,  p.  154. 


124         THE  CATHOLIC  CHUBCH  IN  CHINA 

paper  five  years  later : — "  At  Chang  Shan,  Mrs  W , 

wife  of  a  missionary,  was  killed  with  her  baby  at  her 
breast,  which  was  pinned  by  a  knife  to  its  mother."^ 
And,  however  advantageous  the  presence  of  an  infant 
may  have  been  elsewhere  in  time  of  danger,  one  seems 
to  have  been  within  an  inch  of  costing  its  friends  their 
lives  in  Honan  in  1900.  "One  missionary  whom  I 
met,"  Colonel  Scott  Moncrieff  tells  us,  "represented  a 
party  who  had  lived  in  a  loft  for  five  days,  while  their 
enemies  were  searching  for  them  below.  The  slightest 
noise  would  have  betrayed  them,  and  one  of  the  party 
was  a  baby  a  month  old ! "  * 

In  the  Boxer  Rising,  eleven  missionary  societies  in 
Shansi,  Chi-li,  Chekiang,  and  Shantung  lost  188  persons, 
of  whom  53  were  children.  The  China  Inland  Mission 
lost  25  men,  33  ladies,  and  21  children.* 

There  is  another  way  of  looking  at  this  question, 
which  perhaps  has  not  received  the  consideration  it 
deserves,  viz.,  "that  in  some  ways  the  life  of  the 
married  missionary  is  often  one  of  greater  self-denial 
than  that  of  the  celibate ;  the  latter  has  to  suffer  only 
in  himself,  the  former  also  in  his  wife  and  children, 
which  is  harder " ;  but  Rev.  Alan  Gibson  seems  to 
have  misgivings  on  the  subject,  for  he  adds :  "  When 
this  has  been  premised,  surely  the  intending  missionary 
should  be  urged  to  ponder  well  the  words  of  Christ, 
*  He  that  is  able  to  receive  it,  let  him  receive  it ' ;  for 
the  arguments  in  favour  of  celibacy  are  enormously 
strong."* 

We  may  now  consider  the  question  of  expense. 
Among  the  matters  discussed  at  the  Missionary 
Congress,  in  London,  in  1888,  Dr  Cust  mentions  "the 
early  marriages,  perhaps  at  the  age  of  twenty-three 

1  China  (6),  1901,  p.  106. 

'  Eastern  Missions  from  a  Soldier's  Standpoint^  1907,  Colonel  G.  K. 
Scott  Moncrieff,  CLE.,  p.  96. 

'  ChtnOy  etc,^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  p.  203. 

*  Missionary  Work^  1893,  Rev.  Alan  G.  S.  Gibson,  MJL,  pp.  17-8. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  126 

(when  no  young  doctor,  lawyer,  or  professional  man 
would  think  of  such  things),  the  heavy  charges  to  the 
Society  for  passage-money  and  maintenance,  the 
crowding  of  the  Home  of  Missionary  Children,  the 
diverting  of  the  sacred  funds  contributed  to  evangelise 
the  heathen  to  the  lower  objects  of  maintaining  Schools 
for  Missionary  Children,  and  pensions  for  widows, 
when  neither  widow  nor  child  ought  to  have  come  into 
existence,  as  the  missionary  ought  in  his  youth,  in  his 
strength,  to  have  had  no  thought  but  the  necessity 
laid  upon  him  to  convert  the  heathen.  He  cannot 
have  read  the  Epistle  of  St  Paul  rightly,  if  he  could 
think  of  earthly  love  with  the  cry  of  the  heathen 
ringing  in  his  ears.^  .  .  .  What  makes  the  subject 
more  grotesque  is,  that  a  young  missionary,  not  long 
ago,  started  a  new  idea  of  associated  evangelists  to 
conduct  work  on  much  more  economical  methods,  and, 
of  course,  celibates ;  but  while  his  plans  were  maturing, 
he  met  a  young  girl,  married  her,  and  took  her  out  into 
the  association,  and  she  died  a  few  years  afterwards."* 
**  A  missionary  writes  that  he  must  have  a  larger  allow- 
ance, because  he  has  two  grandmothers  and  a  baby  to 
feed."'  "*I  married,*  said  a  German  missionary,  *at 
the  age  of  forty,  and  had  twelve  children,  if  I  had 
married  at  twenty-three,  I  could  hardly  have  had  more ' ; 
in  fact,"  adds  the  Doctor,  "missionaries  are  a  very 
prolific  class."*  Hence,  we  learn  from  Mr  Hogg,  that 
at  Chefoo,  '*  schools  for  the  children  of  missionaries 
soon  became  a  pressing  need."^ 

It  appears  that  the  income  of  the  Church  Missionary 
Society,  for  the  year  1905-6,  amounted  to  ;^39i>9io — 
;^46,ooo  more  than  the  year  before — ^while  the  expendi- 
ture was  ;^382,6oo.^  It  may  have  been  the  sight  of 
figures  like  these  that  led  *'  A  Chinese,"  in  a  letter  to  the 

*  The  Gospel  Message^  p.  37.  •  Ibid,,  p.  85. 
»  JHd,,  p.  87.  *  Ibtd^  p.  83. 

*  The  Chinese  Empire^  1907,  in  section  by  C.  F.  Hogg,  p.  100. 

*  The  TimeSf  2nd  May  1906^ 


126         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

North  China  Daily  News  of  21st  July  iSqi,  to  describe 
missionary  enterprise  in  his  own  country  as  **a  huge 
scheme  of  charity  for  the  benefit  of  unemployed  pro- 
fessional persons  from  Europe  and  America."^  But 
whether  or  no,  this  sum  does  not  appear  to  be  sufficient, 
since  it  was  resolved  at  the  annual  meeting  in  1906 : — 
*'  That  this  meeting,  gratefully  and  humbly  acknowledg- 
ing the  goodness  of  God  in  the  increased  funds,  and 
especially  in  a  larger  number  of  offers  of  service  than  in 
any  previous  year,  would  regard  these  facts,  together 
with  the  expanding  opportunities  and  urgent  claims  of 
the  non-Christian  world,  as  evidences  of  the  Divine 
Will  that  the  Society  should  vigorously  press  forward 
in  the  work  of  evangelisation,  and  they  call  upon  all  its 
friends  for  earnest  efforts  to  promote  greater  self-sacrifice 
in  the  Lords  cause,  etc."* 

Some  years  before,  Canon  Taylor  expressed  his 
opinion  that ''  it  is  the  system  of  married  missionaries 
that  makes  the  Church  Missionary  Society  so  costly. 
For  the  same  sum  the  Universities  Mission  is  able  to 
employ  four  times  as  many  missionaries,  and  presum- 
ably to  do  four  times  as  much  work.  If  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  were  to  adopt  the  rules  and  financial 
methods  of  the  Universities  Mission,  probably  more 
than  ;^200,ooo  a  year  would  be  set  free  for  additional 
effort."*  "Last  year  [1887],"  the  reverend  gentleman 
notes,  "in  China,  247  agents  of  the  same  society  spent 
;^i  4,875,  3s.  in  making  167  converts  out  of  a  population 
of  382,000,000."* 

Concerning  Indian  missions  conducted  by  societies 
where  matrimony  is  allowed,  Dr  Cust  tells  us,  "a  scale 
of  something  of  this  kind  may  be  assumed :  i.  Three 

*  Thi  Anti-Foreign  Riots  in  China  in  1891, 1892,  North  China  Herald 
Office,  p.  108. 

«  The  Times^  2nd  May  1906. 

'  "  Missionary  Finance"  {Fortnightly  Review^  November  1888),  Rev. 
Canon  Taylor,  p.  588. 

*  "The  Great   Missionary  Failure"  {Fortnightly  Review^  October 
1888),  Rev.  Canon  Taylor,  p.  490. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  127 

years  at  a  preparatory  school  or  trainingr  college,  free 
from  all  cost.  2.  Pocket-money,  clothes,  outfit,  travel- 
ling in  England.  3.  Passage-money:  every  kind  of 
expense  paid.  4.  Railway  or  travelling  expenses  in  the 
missionary-field.    5.  Books  and  instructors  in  languages. 

6.  Unmarried   allowances,    144   rupees   per  mensem. 

7.  House-rent,  furniture,  house-servants,  conveyances. 

8.  Medical  attendance.  9.  Outfit  for  wife,  passage- 
money,  additional  furniture,  toties  guoties.  10.  Addi- 
tional married  allowance,  63  rupees  Per  mensem. 
1 1.  Medical  charges  for  confinement,  surgical  expenses, 
a  repeating  item.  12.  Allowance  for  each  child,  passage- 
money  of  sending  them  out  to  the  field,  when 
adults.     1 3.  Furlough,  passage,  allowances,  to  and  fro. 

14.  Children's  Home  up  to  age  of  sixteen,  final  grant. 

15.  Renewal  of  outfit,  furniture,  and  conveyance  on 
return  to  field.  16.  Retiring  allowance,  closing  grants, 
pensions  to  widows."^ 

"And  when  a  committee  of  management  tries  to 
enforce  stricter  rules,  gently  to  draw  the  reins  tighter, 
when  it  suggests  to  a  missionary  that  he  should  not 
leave  his  post  to  accompany  a  sick  wife  to  England, 
when  it  objects  to  send  out,  at  the  expense  of  the 
Society,  children  of  a  certain  age,  who  will  have  to  be 
sent  back  again  in  a  few  years  at  the  expense  of  the 
Society,  every  kind  of  remonstrance  is  made."  In  a 
letter  demanding  that  "my  four-years-old  child's 
passage-money  be  refunded  to  me  as  a  matter  of  ri^ht 
[italics  in  original],"  the  missionary  writer  thereof  asks : 
"If  money  be  wasted  on  luxuries,  will  the  money  be 
blessed  that  you  save,  if  the  hire  of  the  labourers,  which 
is  kept  back,  crieth  in  the  ear  of  the  Lord  of  Sabaoth  }  " 
Dr  Cust — to  whom  the  letter  was  addressed — remarks 
that,  "  to  have  sent  that  child  out,  and  brought  it  back 
in  a  few  years,  would  have  cost  more  than  the  united 
collections  of  six  average  English  parishes  for  the 
purpose  of  evangelising  the  heathen."* 

^  The  Gospel  Message^  p.  91.  '  Ibid.,  p.  89. 


128         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

'*  Collections  are  made  in  churches  under  the 
influence  of  prayer,"  continues  the  Doctor;  "little 
children  bring  their  pennies,  and  collecting  boxes  are 
handed  about:  it  is  not  right  that  early  marriafires 
should  be  tolerated.  ...  As  it  is  now,  vast  sums  contri- 
buted for  the  conversion  of  the  heathen  never  get  out 
of  England  I  anticipate  the  date  when  contributions 
will  be  labelled,  *  not  to  be  spent  in  Homes  for  children, 
or  for  any  purpose  not  directly  connected  with  the 
evangelisation  of  the  non-Christian  world,'  and  who 
can  pretend  that  the  maintenance  of  the  young  family 
of  a  young  couple  can  have  any  relation  to  the  preaching 
of  the  Gospel?  .  .  ."^ 

Further: — "Some  portions  of  the  tjrpe  of  these 
great  apostles  [St  Patrick,  St  Columba,  and  St  Aidan] 
have  clung  to  the  modern  Religious  Orders  of  the 
Church  of  Rome :  the  Protestant  missionary  has  fallen 
entirely  from  the  ideal :  he  must  have  a  wife  at  puberty, 
and  a  family  supported  by  alms  of  the  Churches :  he 
must  have  salaries,  houses,  comforts,  conveyances, 
pensions,  and  thousands  spent  on  the  education  of  his 
children ;  he  considers  himself  to  be  at  liberty  to  be 
educated  at  the  expense  of  the  Churches,  and  spend  a 
few  years  in  the  foreign  field,  and  then  for  his  own 
convenience,  or  because  a  wife  or  one  of  his  numerous 
children  is  sick,  to  leave  his  flock,  and  perhaps  never 
return,  because  something  more  comfortable  is  available 
in  Great  Britain."* 

In  spite  of  his  experiences,  however,  Dr  Cust  has 
"nothing  to  say,  except  to  express  my  aversion  to  any 
form  of  vow  to  the  Lord  of  celibacy  for  a  term  of  years, 
or  for  a  life-time,  and  to  any  scheme  of  possible 
absolution  from  such  vows  by  a  Bishop  or  anybody 
else.  I  ask  no  more  than  that  which  was  demanded 
from  the  Fellows  of  Colleges  in  former  years,  that  for  a 
stipulated  term  of  years,  say,  ten  from  the  date  of  their 
entering  upon  their  Ordination,  they  should  not  marry, 

^  The  Gospel  Message^  p.  91-2.  *  Jbid.^  p.  90. 


MARRIAGE  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  129 

After  the  age  of,  say,  thirty,  they  should  be  free  to  do  as 
they  may  wish.  As  regards  the  woman-worker  in  the  field, 
on  her  I  would  place  no  limit  of  time  at  all.  I  must  leave 
it  to  her  conscience  after  a  perusal  of  i  Cor.  vii.  34."^ 

The  London  Missionary  Society,  according  to  Dr 
Lawrence,  were  prepared,  some  years  ago,  to  go  a  step 
further,  and  only  employ  unmarried  missionaries  under 
protest,  as  it  were,  e.g. :  '*  While  recognising  the  expedi- 
ency of  employing  in  special  circumstances,  and  for  a 
limited  time,  unmarried  men  as  missionaries,  the  com- 
mittee emphatically  endorse  the  opinion  expressed  to 
them  very  decidedly  by  some  of  our  most  experienced 
missionaries,  that  the  labour  and  influence  of  mission- 
aries* wives,  and  the  wholesome  and  happy  example  of 
Christian  home  life,  are  among  the  most  important 
means  of  successful  missionary  effort."^  Many  things 
have  happened  since  that  resolution  was  passed,  and 
as  Dr  Lawrence  quotes  with  approval  the  opinion 
that  "it  has  pleased  God  that  even  Mission  Boards 
shall  be  able  to  learn  by  experience,"'  it  may  be 
that  we  shall  hear  of  them  applying,  some  day,  to  the 
marriage  of  Christian  missionaries  of  every  age,  what 
Dr  Cust  only  applies  to  the  younger  of  them : — 
"  Setting  aside  the  extreme  improvidence  from  a  worldly 
point  of  view,  it  is  not  Mission  Service :  there  is  nothing 
of  the  grace  of  self-denial  and  self-sacrifice.  In  the  Acts 
of  the  Apostles,  in  the  early  history  of  the  Christian 
Church  (before  the  introduction  of  enforced  celibacy  of 
the  Roman  Church),  we  find  nothing  to  warrant  the  idea, 
that  a  man  must  be  married  to  be  a  missionary.  If  the 
young  aspirant  to  the  high  office  cannot  rise  to  the  level 
of  his  vocation,  is  not  equal  to  the  task,  and  considers 
matrimony  a  necessary  ingredient  of  Gospel-preaching, 
he  had  better  select  some  other  profession."* 

1  T^  Gospel  Message^  p.  82. 

'  Modem  Missions  in  the  East^  1895,  Edward  A.  Lawrence,  D.D., 
p.  211.  '  IbicL^^.  147. 

^  The  Gospel  Message^  1896,  Robert  Needham  Cust,  LL.D.,  Hon. 
Secretary  to  the  Canterbury  Board  of  Missions,  p.  87. 

I 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA 

"The  general  opinion  prevalent  in  the  West  is  that 
the  exclusive  and  anti-foreign  feeling  now  met  with  in 
China  is  something  peculiar  to  the  Chinese  character, 
and  dating  from  remote  antiquity.  It  is  probable, 
however,  that  it  was  the  conquering  race,  the  Manchus, 
who  forced  this  spirit  upon  the  Chinese  people,  which 
led  to  the  attempt,  so  long  maintained,  to  hermetically 
seal  the  Empire  against  the  intrusion  of  the  foreigner. 
.  .  .  Before  the  advent  of  the  Manchus,  China  main- 
tained constant  relations  with  the  countries  of  Asia  ; 
traders  from  Arabia,  Persia,  and  India,  trafficked  in 
Chinese  ports,  and  passed  into  the  interior.  The  tablet 
of  Sian-fu,^  already  mentioned,  shows  that  missionaries 
from  the  West  were  propagating  the  Christian  Religion 
in  the  eighth  century;  in  the  thirteenth  Marco  Polo 
not  only  was  cordially  received,  but  held  office  in  the 
Empire,  and  at  that  time  the  Christian  religious  cere- 
monies were  tolerated  at  Peking,  where  there  was  an 
Archbishop.  To  the  close  of  the  last  Chinese  dynasty, 
the  Jesuit  missionaries  were  well  received  and  treated 
at  the  capital,  and,  as  Hue  remarks,  the  first  Tartar 
Emperors  merely  tolerated  what  they  found  existing. 
This  would  seem  to  show  conclusively  that  the  Chinese 
did  not  originally  have  the  aversion  to  foreigners  which 
is  usually  assumed."  ^ 

'  A  stone,  date  A.D.  781,  inscribed  in  Chinese  and  Syriac,  excavated 
in  1625,  and«  till  lately,  to  be  found  in  the  yard  of  a  temple  at  Sian-fu. 
^  China  in  TransformaHon^  1898,  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun,  pp.  34-$. 


134         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

**The  earlier  dynasties  of  the  Chinese,"  says  Mr 
Boulger,  "were  not  naturally  averse  to  foreign  inter- 
course. The  foreign  merchant  not  merely  brought  the 
rare  and  curious  things  of  his  own  land;  his  very 
presence  sufficed  to  prove  the  fame  of  the  Chinese  ruler 
in  other  countries.  The  borders  of  the  Chinese  Empire 
were  well  protected,  both  on  the  land  side  and  on  the 
seaboard,  and  there  was  nothing  in  the  appearance  or 
resources  of  the  strangers  to  suggest  the  idea  of 
superiority  over  the  people  of  the  Middle  Kingdom. 
Yet,  even  under  these  circumstances,  the  habitual 
caution  of  the  Chinese  prevented  their  allowing 
foreigners  to  enter  the  Empire  except  at  one  point, 
which  was  generally  the  great  southern  harbour  of 
Canton."^ 

This  being  so,  it  will  be  profitable  to  investigate 
how  far  the  conduct  of  Christian  nations  has  been 
calculated  to  promote  good  feeling  between  the  East 
and  West,  or  the  reverse. 

Captain  Brinkley  informs  us  that  Portuguese  trading 
expeditions  were  kindly  received  in  Canton,  in  1516 
and  1517.  In  the  year  following,  a  third  one  was 
expelled  in  consequence  of  "  rapine  and  violence."  The 
squadron  "continued  to  infest  the  Chinese  coast  as 
pirates."  Their  trade  was  marked  by  "extreme  law- 
lessness "  ;  and  their  exploits  included  the  rifling  of  the 
tombs  of  "seventeen  Chinese  Kings,"  and  raids  for  the 
capture  of  "women  and  virgins."  The  Portuguese 
were  finally  driven  from  the  mainland  in  IS49,  "by 
conduct  of  which,  had  the  Chinese  themselves  been 
guilty  of  it,  no  condemnation  would  have  been  found 
too  strong."* 

Chinas  acquaintance  with  Holland  commenced  in 
1601,  and  the  manner  of  it  is  thus  narrated: — "  .  .  . 
first  an  armed  essay  on  the  part  of  the  Dutch  to  drive 

^  Central  Asian  Questions,  1885,  Demetrius  C.  Boulger,  p.  316. 
*  CAina^  Its  History^  Arts^  and  Literature,  1904,  Capt  F.  Brinkley, 
vol  X.,  pp.  i70*i-2-3-4. 


THE  EDUCATION  OP  CHINA  135 

the  Portuguese  from  a  place  in  China  [Macao]  which 
the  latter  had  leased  to  them ;  and  secondly  with  the 
forceful  seizure  of  another  place  in  China's  territory  [the 
Pescadores,  afterwards  changed  for  Formosa],  though 
no  state  of  war  existed,  nor  even  any  cause  of  quarrel. 
.  .  .  An  intercourse  commenced  in  rapine  and  aggres- 
sion towards  a  nation  which  had  never  provoked  them, 
was  continued  by  fruitless  obsequiousness"^ — this  in 
reference  to  the  compliance  by  the  Dutch  envoys  with 
the  demands  of  Chinese  etiquette  in  the  matter  of  pros- 
trations, etc  Nor  does  the  personal  appearance  of 
the  visitors  from  the  Low  Countries  appear  to  have 
impressed  their  hosts.  A  Chinese  writer  thus  describes 
one  body  of  Europeans  who  reached  Canton  about 
1506  : — **  At  about  this  time  also  the  Hollanders,  who 
in  ancient  times  inhabited  a  wild  territory,  and  had  no 
intercourse  with  China,  came  to  Macao  in  two  or  three 
large  ships.  Their  clothes  and  their  hair  were  red, 
their  bodies  tall,  they  had  blue  eyes  sunk  deep  into 
their  heads.  Their  feet  were  one  cubit  and  two-tenths 
long,  and  they  frightened  people  by  their  strange 
appearance."  * 

"  England  introduced  herself  to  the  Chinese  in  an 
essentially  bellicose  character,  and  long  retained  it." 
In  1637,  an  expedition  under  Captain  Weddel  arrived. 
Jealousy  on  the  part  of  the  Portuguese  led  to  mis- 
understanding by  the  Chinese,  who  opened  fire  on  an 
English  boat.  The  fort— on  the  Canton  River — was 
bombarded,  after  which  "there  was  the  usual  sequel — a 
landing  party,  the  dismantling  of  the  fort,  and  the 
'demolition  of  what  they  could.'"  Eventually,  the 
Chinese  agreed  to  trade»  and  the  British  to  restore 
junks,  guns,  etc. 

In  1670,  England  opened  trade  in  Formosa  ''by 
means  of  a  treaty  with  the  ex-pirate  Koxinga,"  the 
"King  of  the   island."    At   the  mainland  port  with 

^  Brinkley,  voL  x.,  pp.  180-1-2-3. 

'  Ckineispast  cmdfiUnr^^  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe^  p.  133. 


136         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

which  the  trade  of  Formosa  was  carried  on,  Amoy,  it 
was  opposed  by  the  Chinese  Government — not 
unreasonably,  as  the  Engflish  figured  as  the  ''com- 
mercial allies  of  a  pirate  who  defied  Chinese  authority, 
and  had  forcibly  possessed  himself  of  a  portion  of 
Chinese  territory."  ^ 

"  The  impression  made  by  the  unscrupulous  aggres- 
sions of  European  adventurers,  is  well  set  forth  in  the 
fictitious  narrative  called  The  Magic  Carpet,  written 
by  a  Chinese  author  two  centuries  ago,"  says  Dr 
Martin.  "*In  the  days  of  the  Ming  dynasty,*  says 
this  Oriental  apologue,  'a  ship  of  the  red-haired 
barbarians  came  to  one  of  our  southern  seaports,  and 
requested  permission  to  trade.  This  being  refused,  the 
strangers  begged  to  be  allowed  the  use  of  so  much 
ground  as  they  could  cover  with  a  carpet,  for  the 
purpose  of  drying  their  goods.  Their  petition  was 
granted;  and  taking  the  carpet  by  the  corners,  they 
stretched  it,  until  there  was  room  for  a  large  body  of 
men,  who,  drawing  their  swords,  took  possession  of  the 
city.'"^ 

The  absence  of  any  anti-foreign  sentiment  in  the 
interior  of  China  in  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth 
century  is  commented  on  by  Captain  Brinkley. 
Speaking  of  the  period  about  1724  he  remarks: — 
"At  no  time  were  there  fewer  than  forty  priests  in 
the  country.  The  presence  of  these  men  must  have 
been  known  to  thousands  upon  thousands  of  people 
outside  the  circle  of  their  converts.  In  travelling  to 
and  from  their  stations,  in  their  religious  ministrations, 
in  their  daily  lives  however  secluded,  it  is  impossible 
that  their  identity  can  have  been  concealed.  Yet,  with 
exceptions  so  rare  as  to  prove  the  rule,  the  people 
never  betrayed  them.  On  the  part  of  their  converts 
fidelity  might  have  been  expected.  But  that  the  men 
and  women  whom  they  called  '  Heathens '  and  *  Pagans ' 

*  Brinkley,  voL  x.,  pp.  187-8-9,  9a 

*  A  Cycle  of  CatJu^,  1896,  W.  A.  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  p.  2a 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  137 

should  have  refrained  from  betraying^  them,  indicates  a 
mood  very  different  from  the  bitter  anti-foreigrn  senti- 
ment now  attributed  to  the  Chinese  nation  in  general. 
The  fact  already  deduced  from  independent  records 
is  here  strongly  confirmed,  that  outside  the  narrow 
areas  where  the  abuses  of  mediaeval  trade,  and  the 
violence  of  mediaeval  traders,  created  a  special  atmo- 
sphere of  passion,  no  animosity  was  harboured  against 
foreigners."^ 

In  1802,  and  again  in  1808,  an  English  force  was 
thrown  into  Macao  to  protect  the  place  on  Portugal's 
behalf  against  the  danger  of  a  French  attack — though 
the  Chinese,  on  the  first  occasion,  made  it  perfectly  clear 
that  Macao  had  never  been  ceded  to  Portugal,  only 
rented  to  her.  An  attack  on  Canton,  we  are  told, 
seemed  imminent  at  one  moment  of  this  complication, 
which  is  thus  summed  up  by  our  Author : — **To  effect 
military  occupation  of  a  portion  of  a  friendly  State's 
territory,  and  then  to  threaten  an  act  of  open  warfare 
because  the  State's  officials  decline  to  admit  the 
propriety  of  the  occupation — these  are  proceedings 
which  would  create  some  surprise  were  they  adopted 
in  Europe.  But  China  being  their  victim,  no  one  found 
them  at  all  abnormal."  They  had  a  consistent  sequel, 
thus  described : — "  The  river  at  Canton  converted  into 
an  arena  of  belligerent  operations  by  British  and 
American  ships;  the  Chinese  remonstrating  against 
such  a  flagrant  breach  of  international  law,  and  being 
told  placidly  that  it  could  not  be  cured  and  must  be 
endured ;  their  attempts  to  assert  their  national  rights 
by  hampering  the  trade;  the  foreign  merchants 
retaliating  by  stopping  |.the  trade  altogether;  and 
finally,  the  Chinese,  who  were  the  wronged  party 
throughout,  being  compelled  to  make  many  conces- 
sions in  order  that  the  foreigner  might  consent  to 
resume  the  business  which  alone  held  him  in  Canton."* 

In  1 8 16  an  embassy  was  sent  to  Peking  under  Lord 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xi.,  p.  140.  >  J^id.^  voL  x.,  pp.  209-10-11. 


138         THE  CATHOUC  CHUBCH  IN  CHINA 

Amherst  When  his  Lordship  reached  Canton  on  his 
return  journey,  he  found  that  H.M.S.  Alceste,  which 
was  to  convey  him  to  England — beingf  dissatisfied  with 
the  berth  assigned  to  her,  and  having  moved  up  the 
river,  and  been  met  with  some  futile  fire  from  the  war- 
junks  and  forts — had  **  silenced  the  former  with  a 
shot,"  and  "sent  the  garrison  of  the  latter  scamper- 
ing with  a  broadside."  •  .  .  "Still,"  says  Captain 
Brinkley,  "it  is  unusual  to  read  in  history,  that  while 
an  ambassador  is  visiting  the  court  of  a  friendly 
country,  the  ship  by  which  he  reached  her  shores  is 
engaged  in  acts  of  warfare  against  her  fleet  and  forts."  ^ 

In  1820  and  1 821,  in  consequence  of  fierce  attacks 
made  by  natives  on  watering-parties  of  British  sailors, 
and  other  disturbances,  fresh  attempts  were  made  by 
the  Canton  authorities  to  restrict  foreign  intercourse. 
The  attacks  were  the  natural  consequences  of  what 
had  happened  before,  and  showed  that  "a  new  mood 
was  beginning  to  sway  the  hitherto  pacific  natives  of 
Canton."* 

In  1832,  the  East  India  Company  in  an  attempt 
"to  extend  the  tradal  area  beyond  Canton,"  fitted  up 
the  Amherst  "suitably"  by  loading  her  with  miscel- 
laneous goods,  giving  her  a  simulated  character,  and 
investing  her  officers  with  fictitious  titles.  She  was 
hospitably  received,  but  trade  declined.  "  Some  of  the 
officers  of  government  were  civil  and  forbearing,  and 
even  accepted  small  presents ;  others  less  condescend- 
ing were  fairly  bullied  by  the  people  in  the  Amherst^ 
their  junks  boarded,  or  their  doors  knocked  down  and 
their  quarters  invaded."    The  expedition  failed.' 

In  183s,  Mr  W.  H.  Medhurst  went  into  the 
interior.  He  wrote: — "Thus  we  have  gone  through 
various  parts  of  four  provinces,  and  many  villages, 
giving  away  about  1 8,000  volumes,  of  which  6000  were 
portions  of  the  Scriptures,  among  a  cheerful  and  willing 

^  Brinkley,  vol.  x.,  pp.  214-5. 

«  IlritL^  pp.  215-6.  '  Ibid^  pp.  216-7. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  139 

people  without  meeting  with  the  least  aggression  or 
iiyury ;  having  been  always  received  by  the  people  with 
a  cheerful  smile,  and  most  generally  by  the  officers  with 
politeness  and  respect."  ^ 

In  1837,  Mr  Gutzlaff  penetrated  farther  into  the 
interior.  '*  He  too  found  eversrwhere  a  cheerful,  polite 
reception,  and  the  mandarins  left  him  severely  alone. 
His  verdict  was,  *  The  farther  from  the  coast,  the  more 
the  moral  condition  of  the  people  seems  to  improve,  and 
the  greater  the  interest  they  take  in  our  books.'  Every 
reader  must  at  once  be  struck,"  says  Captain  Brinkley, 
''  by  the  fact  that,  while  the  people  in  and  about  Canton 
were  calling  foreigners  'devils,'  and  stoning  or  bambooing 
them  whenever  opportunity  offered,  the  people  in  other 
districts  treated  them  with  courtesy,  geniality,  respect, 
and  even  friendship."  ^ 

In  the  same  year  the  agent  of  the  British  and  Foreign 
Bible  Society  in  Eastern  Asia  addressed  a  '*  Letter  to 
the  British  Public  on  the  Advisability  of  the  Occupation 
of  the  Bonin  Islands,"  in  the  course  of  which  he 
wrote: — "It  is  sometimes  contended  that  the  Chinese 
have  a  right  to  lay  what  restrictions  they  think  proper 
upon  their  trade  with  foreigners;  and  to  drive  them 
from  their  shores  as  often  as  they  choose ;  whoever  does 
not  like  these  terms  may  go  ebewhere  in  quest  of 
better.  But  the  question  that  demands  an  answer  does 
not  seem  to  be  what  rz£'Ai  they  have  to  perplex  com- 
mercial  dealings  [italics  his]  which  they  themselves  have 
encouraged,  or  to  treat  us  on  all  public  occasions  as 
destitute,  unprincipled  men;  but  whether  it  be  not 
advisable  to  take  such  steps  as  may  sooner  or  later 
convince  them  that  their  opinion  of  us  is  erroneous, 
however  flattering  it  may  be  to  their  pride  and  vanity 
to  cherish  it.^  The  justice  of  declaring  war  against 
them  would  be  questioned  by  many ;  and  an  embassy, 
unless  it  were  conducted  with  a  degree  of  firmness  and 
resolution  far  different  from  any  of  its  predecessors, 
1  Brinkley,  vol  x.,  p.  225.  '  Ibid,^  p.  228. 


140         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

would  prove,  like  them,  a  melancholy  failure-"  Whence 
the  writer  proceeds  to  urge  the  occupation  of  the  Bonin 
Islands  as  a  base  for  trade  and  religion.^ 

During  1840- 1-2,  China  was  engaged  in  a  war  with 
this  country,  of  which  the  remote  origin  was  "Great 
Britain's  failure  to  organise  any  machinery  for  the 
control  of  her  nationals  trading  in  China,  and  secondarily 
in  her  objection  to  their  control  by  Chinese  machinery." 
The  proximate  cause  was  ''an  ill-judged  attempt  on  the 
part  of  the  Chinese  to  terminate  by  hasty  and  heroic 
measures  a  trade  [opium]  which  had  attained  large 
dimensions  through  the  corrupt  connivance  of  her  own 
officials.  Morally  the  Chinese  were  altogether  in  the 
right.  Tactically  they  blundered."  *  The  same  opinion 
seems  to  have  been  formed  by  Dr  Rennie.  "There 
are,"  he  tells  us,  "  strong  grounds  for  believing  that  in 
almost  every  dispute  which  arises  between  ourselves 
and  the  Chinese  we  are,  in  the  first  instance  in  the 
wrong ;  but  unfortunately  the  Chinese  equally  invariably 
adopt  the  wrong  method  of  putting  matters  right,  and 
by  the  time  the  case  becomes  one  for  consular  legisla- 
tion, the  original  wrong  committed  by  us  is  entirely  lost 
sight  of,  and  the  accumulated  errors  of  the  Chinese 
alone  made  the  subject  of  consideration  ;  consequently, 
as  a  general  rule,  they  get  the  worst  of  such  appeals."^ 

The  war  cost  China,  inter  alia,  $21,000,000 ;  Hong- 
Kong  ;  and  the  opening  of  five  ports  to  trade.  The 
opium  question  was  entirely  ignored.*  "  But  for  opium- 
smuggling  by  British  subjects  the  war  would  never  have 
taken  place,  so  far  as  human  intelligence  can  discern. 
...  It  is  impossible  to  doubt  that  had  opium  been  an 
insignificant  article  of  commerce,  a  country  where  the 
public  conscience  is  so  highly  developed  as  it  is  in 

*  Trade  with  China,  1837,  G.  Tradescant  Lay,  pp.  5-6. 

*  Brinkley,  vol.  xi.,  p.  12. 

'  Peking  and  the  Pekingese,  1865,  Dr  D.  F.  Rennie,  M.D.,  vol.  i., 

pp.  134-5. 

*  Brinkley,  vpL  xi.,  p.  37. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  141 

Ensrland,  would  never  have  officially  associated  itself 
with  such  a  traffic,  or  questioned  China's  rigrht  to  crush 
it  by  the  exercise  of  any  measures  however  drastic."^ 

In  i847i  a  mob  at  Fatshan  stoned  six  Eng^lishmen — 
who  were  rescued  by  Chinese  officials,  who  suffered 
severely  in  the  effort  The  consequences  of  this,  and 
"the  trumpet-toned  instructions  of  Lord  Palmerston," 
were  that  "without  any  superfluous  diplomatic  pre- 
liminaries, such  as  formulating^  demands  and  awaiting 
rejoinders,"  troops  were  ordered  from  Honsr-Kongf,  who 
passing  up  the  Pearl  River,  bombarded  the  forts,  fired 
the  magazines,  spiked  827  cannon,  and  held  the  city 
of  Canton  en  prise,  no  resistance  being  offered  by  the 
Chinese.  "  The  British  Government  did  not  approve  of 
this  singular  foray.  But  it  must  be  confessed  that  their 
disapproval  was  directed  against  its  rashness  rather  than 
against  its  immorality.  Such  a  small  force,  they  objected, 
might  have  encouraged  the  Chinese  to  resistance."' 

Concerning  Shanghai  in  1848,  Sir  Rutherford 
Alcock  reported:  "Our  relations  with  the  people  and 
the  authorities  leave  little  to  be  desired."* 

About  this  time  three  missionaries  were  "badly 
beaten  and  robbed."  The  Chinese  authorities  were 
notified  that  payment  of  customs  duties  by  foreigners 
would  be  suspended  until  the  guilty  parties  were  arrested 
and  punished ;  and  a  blockade  of  the  river  was  declared. 
"  These  extraordinarily  resolute  steps  did  not  move  the 
Chinese  .  .  •  nor  did  it  appear  that  the  Consul's 
demands  for  redress  would  have  been  satisfied,  had  he 
not  sent  an  official  in  a  sloop  of  war  to  lay  a  complaint 
direct  before  the  Viceroy  at  Nanking.  Then  the  local 
authorities  yielded  at  once.  Ten  persons  were  appre- 
hended, and  several  of  them  having  been  identified  by 
the  missionaries  as  their  assailants,  they  were  all 
adequately  punished.  .  .  .  Success  was  achieved,  not  by 
a  display  of  force,  but  by  an  appeal  to  the  Viceroy."  * 

1  Brinkley,  vol  xi^  p.  14.  '  IH<Ly  pp.  187-8-9. 

»  Ibid.,  p.  193.  *  Ibid,,  pp.  195-6. 


142         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  1852,  Consul  Alcock  declared  that  "a  progrres- 
sive  and  evident  deterioration "  had  taken  place  in  the 
foreigrner's  position,  and  avowed  his  ''firm  persuasion 
that  the  time  had  arrived  for  energfetic  action,"  "  It  will 
occur  to  the  reader,"  says  Captain  Brinkley,  *'that 
in  Shans^hai's  case,  as  in  Canton's,  closer  acquaint- 
ance with  the  foreigfner  and  his  ways  had  tended  to 
alienate  native  STOodwill,  and  that  in  both  places  alike 
the  orisrinal  friendliness  of  the  people  was  converted 
into  hostility  by  cogrnate  causes.  Doubtless  that  is  true 
to  some  extent,  and  it  is  also  true  that  the  '  progfressive 
and  evident  deterioration '  noticed  by  Consul  Alcock  in 
1852,  had  begfun  to  be  perceptible  after  his  own  display 
of  force  in  1 848.  But  careful  study  of  the  facts  indicates 
that  the  Chinese  officials,  actings,  it  must  be  admitted,  in 
obedience  to  a  natural  and  perfectly  excusable  senti* 
ment,  soug^ht  to  create  difficulties  instead  of  removing 
them."^ 

By  the  treaty  of  1843,  any  vessel  trading  to  Hong- 
Kong  had  to  be  furnished  with  a  pass  given  by  the 
Chinese  authorities.  This  raised  difficulties,  because 
some  of  these  had  not  the  least  desire  to  promote  the 
prosperity  of  Hong-Kong ;  others  saw  an  opportunity 
to  enrich  themselves;  whilst  others  enforced  the 
rules  severely.  To  meet  these  difficulties  the  British 
authorities  granted  register  to  Chinese  resident  in 
Hong-Kong,  which  converted  their  vessels  into  British- 
owned  ships.  But,  in  spite  of  all  care,  not  a  few  of 
these  ships  became  smugglers  and  even  pirates.  Thus 
Hong-Kong  became  a  centre  for  sea-robbers,  and  a 
refuge  for  bad  characters.  During  this  ''reign  of 
terror" — which  lasted  till  1867 — ^peaceful  trading 
vessels  had  to  go  about  armed  to  the  teeth,  and  in 
their  great  straits,  the  much  suffering  Chinese  began 
to  employ  European  and  American  ships  to  convoy 
their  junks.  Sometimes  these  convoys  turned  free- 
booters, and  in  the  inner  waters  of  China,  where  the 

^  Brinkley,  vol  xi.,  pp.  200-1. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  143 

arm  of  the  Consul  did  not  reach,  and  where  the  Chinese 
authorities,  warned  by  bitter  experience,  declined  to  lay 
hands  on  a  foreigfn  malefactor,  ''excesses  of  the  most 
shocking  and  ruthless  kind  were  perpetrated  in 
abundance.  .  •  .  The  Portuguese  stand  at  the  head 
of  this  villainous  record."  They  had  a  fleet  of 
lorchas — ^vessels  of  European  build  but  rigged  like 
junks — ^which,  not  content  with  receiving  some  ;^7o,ooo 
a  year  for  legitimate  convoy  services,  adopted  the 
profession  of  privateer,  made  descents  upon  villages, 
carried  off  the  women,  murdered  the  men,  stole  every- 
thing portable,  burned  the  houses,  and  became 
infinitely  greater  scourges  than  the  pirates  they  were 
paid  to  repel.  Out  of  this  state  of  affairs  arose 
complications  connected  with  the  capture  by  the 
Chinese  of  the  lorcha  Arrow} 

1856  brought  China  yet  another  war  with  Great 
Britain,  ostensibly  because  of  the  Arrow  incident, 
but  ''really  for  the  purpose  of  forcing  open  the  city 
[Canton]."*  Concerning  this,  Mr  Oliphant  remarks : — 
"These  additional  demands  involved  the  right  for  all 
foreign  representatives  of  free  access  to  the  authorities 
and  city  of  Canton.  Hitherto  the  point  has  been  one 
simply  of  principle,  and  turned  on  the  right  of  the 
Chinese  Government  to  seize  a  lorcha  under  certain 
conditions.  .  .  •  Moreover,  this  sudden  change  of  issue 
rouses  the  whole  suspicious  nature  of  the  Chinaman, 
and  he  draws  an  inference  somewhat  discreditable  to 
us,  but  not  to  be  wondered  at,  which  he  expresses  in  a 
proclamation  issued  to  the  Cantonese:  'Whereas  the 
English  barbarians  have  commenced  disturbances  on  a 
false  pretence,  their  real  object  being  admission  into 
the  city,  the  Governor  -  General  referring  to  the 
unanimous  expression  of  objection  to  the  measure  on 
the  part  of  the  entire  population  of  Canton  in  1849,  has 
flatly  refused  to  concede  this,  and  is  determined  not  to 


CUllCCUC  UllS,  cillU    IS    UCI 

1  Brinkley,  vol.  xL,  pp.  270-9. 
*  lHd.y  vol  xii.,  p.  7. 


144         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

grant  the  request,  let  them  carry  their  feats  and 
machinations  to  what  length  they  will.'"^ 

Great  Britain  was  joined  by  France,  on  account  of 
the  torturing  and  beheading  of  one  of  her  missionaries 
in  Kwangsi,  P^re  Chapdelaine.^ 

Canton  was  captured  in  1857  ;  and  China  being  still 
so  unreasonable  as  to  decline  "  a  wider  field  of  contact 
with  persons  who  had  proved  themselves  the  most 
objectionable  neighbours  conceivable,"  *  the  forts  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Pei-ho  were  also  taken.  The  demands  of 
the  Powers  were  conceded,  chief  among  which  were :  the 
establishment  of  Ministers  resident  at  Peking,  accredited 
to  the  court  of  China ;  and  the  right  of  British  subjects 
to  visit  the  interior  for  purposes  of  trade. 

Our  attitude  towards  China  was  well  explained  by 
H.M.  Minister  in  his  despatch  to  Lord  Malmesbury  of 
2 1st  May  1859 : — "I  hope  in  this  way  to  compel  the 
Chinese  Government  to  declare  itself  upon  those  points 
which  we  know  are  most  unpalatable  to  it ;  and  if  there 
exists  upon  its  part  a  disposition  to  evade  its  obligations, 
to  thrust  us  back  as  before  upon  the  sea-board,  and 
refuse  the  reception  which  we  cannot  waive  without 
lowering  our  national  dignity,  I  trust  we  shall  be  in 
possession  of  their  views  when  we  arrive  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Pei-ho,  and  not  be  left  to  discover  them  gradually 
at  Pekin.  If,  as  is  most  probable,  the  Court  of  Pekin 
is  wavering,  anxious  to  evade,  but  unwilling  to  risk  a 
rupture,  I  trust  that  identity  of  views  among  the 
foreign  representatives,  firm  language,  and  an 
imposing  demonstration  of  force,  will  secure  the 
observance  by  it  of  recent  treaties,  and  incline  it  to 
listen  to  moderate  and  pacific  advisers."^ 

The  question  of  the  Ministers  was  shelved  for  a 
time,  as  attention  concentrated  on  troubles  arising  out 

*  Narrative  of  the  Earlof  Elgiris  Mission  to  China  andjapan^  1859, 
Laurence  Oliphant,  vol.  i.,  pp.  7-S. 

»  Brinklcy,  vol.  xii.,  p.  11.  *  Ibid^  p.  12. 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  Correspondence  with  Mr  Bruce,  etc,  i860,  p.  5. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  145 

of  the  ratification  of  the"  new  Treaty  of  Tientsin.    This 
was  to  take  place  at  Peking,  whither  the  envoys  desired 
to  proceed  via  Taku.    The  Chinese,  however,  desired 
that  they  should  land  at  Peh-tang,  some  miles  north ; 
and  warned  the  Powers  concerned  that  any  attempt  to 
force  the  passage  of  the  Pei-ho  would  be  resisted — 
the  forts  having  been  reconstructed  in  modern  style. 
'  Considering  the  theories  that  filled  the  atmosphere  of 
the  foreign  setdements  in  China,  theories  of  Chinese 
proud  exclusiveness  and  unscrupulous  deceit,  it  is  easy 
to  understand  why  the  pride  of  the  foreign  envoys 
rebelled  against  going  round  by  a  back  door,  when  the 
front  was  barricaded  in  their  face ;  but  to  that  pride, 
and  not  to  Chinese  'perfidy,'  the  consequent  catas- 
trophe must  be  attributed."^    In  1859,  the  Taku  Forts 
were  attacked,  and  unsuccessfuUy.    They  were  taken 
in  the  year  following;  and  in  the  subsequent  advance 
of  the  British  and  French  forces  to  Peking,  occurred  the 
capture  of  Mr  Parkes,  while  under  a  flag  of  truce.    Of 
his  party  of  thirty-seven,  twenty-two  succumbed  or  were 
killed  ;  and,  on  their  bodies,  when  brought  into  the  allied 
camp, ''  there  was  sufficient  evidence  to  indicate  the  bar- 
barous treatment  these  unhappy  men  had  undergone."  * 
Lord  Elgin  then  ordered   the  destruction   of  the 
Emperor's    detached    palaces    at    Yuen-ming    Yuen. 
Sir  John  Michel  describes  the  scene  for  us: — "The 
actual  quantity  taken  away  was  like  a  drop  in  the 
bucket   of  what   remained   and   was   destroyed  .  .  . 
Inside  they  were  walking  about  smashing  with   the 
butt-ends  of  their  muskets  beautiful  mirrors,  clocks, 
and  articles  of  vertu   too  bulky  for  removal.      The 
floors  were  strewn   knee-deep  with  silks   and  satins 
which  they  appeared  to  have  neither  the  means  nor 
the  inclination  to  remove,  their  attention  being  absorbed 
in   seeking  for  property   of  more  value,"*     In   this 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xiL,  p.  2a  '  Ibid^  p.  31. 

'  Pekif9g  and  the  PtHngtse^  1865,  Dr  D.  F.  Rennie,  M.D.,  vol.  I, 
pp.  310-1 1. 

K 


146         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

connection  Captain  Brinkley  remarks  : — "  Even  in  the 
eyes  of  Lord  Elgin's  countrymen,  fully  as  they  may 
sympathise  with  his  difficult  position,  it  is  plain  that 
whatever  character  of  stern  pure  justice  he  desired  to 
impart  to  the  burning  of  the  palaces,  the  act  was  fatally 
marred  by  its  antecedents.  Had  the  allies  committed 
no  excesses  on  their  march  from  Peh-tang  to  Peking, 
had  they  abstained  from  pillage,  rapine,  and  wanton 
destruction,  their  motives  in  making  a  bonfire  of  the 
Yuen-ming  Yuen  buildings  would  have  become  intel- 
ligible from  its  context.  But  they  did  not  so  abstain. 
At  Peh-tang,  where  the  landing  was  effected,  the 
citizens  showed  unqualified  friendliness." ^  **  The  people 
of  Peh-tang  were  most  obliging,"  Lord  Wolseley 
informs  us,  "and,  seemingly,  gave  every  information 
in  their  power."*  "They  heard  my  speech  with 
acclamation,"  says  Mr  Consul  Parkes,  "declaring  in 
reply  to  my  demand  whether  they  wanted  to  live  or 
die,  that  they  preferred  the  former ;  and  also  that  all 
the  soldiers  had  left  the  place.  In  proof  of  this,  they 
were  willing,  they  said,  to  take  me  to  the  forts,  and 
give  them  over  to  me,  only  I  must  be  very  careful  of  the 
mines  with  which  they  were  filled."  * 

Not  only  this,  but  the  citizens  received  the  allies 
hospitably  and  supplied  them  with  provisions.  Yet  the 
allies  sacked  the  town,  pillaging  everything  they  could 
carry  away,  and  destroying  everything  immovable.* 
"  The  town,  I  am  sorry  to  say,"  continues  Consul  Parkes, 
"is  in  a  sad  condition,  for  it  has  been  thoroughly 
pillaged  by  our  troops :  when  I  say  our,  I  mean  the 
whole  force,  for  I  must  say  that  though  our  men  have 
misbehaved,  their  excesses  have  been  far  surpassed  by 
the  French,  for  the  reason  that  the  latter  make  no 

'  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  p.  32. 

*  Narrative  of  the   War  with  China  in  i860,  1862,  Lt.-Col.  G.  J. 
Wolseley,  p.  93. 

8  Life  of  Sir  Harry  Parkes^  1894,  Stanley  Lane-Poole,  vol.  i.,  p.  352. 

*  Brinkley,  vol  xii.,  p.  32. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  147 

attempt  to  prevent  license  of  any  kind,  while  our 
Provost  Marshal  does  not  spare  the  whip  in  the  case 
of  our  own  people.  ...  It  is  useless  to  tell  the  people 
that  we  will  protect  them  (as  we  did  tell  them  by 
proclamation  when  we  entered  the  town),  for  we  don't, 
and  with  the  French  in  company,  I  don't  think  we 
can.  .  .  .  Peh-tang,  just  now,  presents  a  wretched 
spectacle.  The  people  have  all  left  it,  and  I  regret  to 
say  a  g^ood  number,  I  dare  say  as  many  as  forty  or  fifty 
people,  for  the  most  part  women,  have  made  away  with 
themselves  by  poison  or  suffocation.  If  we  are  to  leave 
such  terrible  traces  of  our  course  as  these,  we  shall  do 
ourselves  a  great  deal  of  harm."^  **  At  present,"  says 
Dr  Rennie,  *' there  is  an  order  against  looting,  which, 
however,  would  seem  to  be  more  honoured  in  the  breach 
than  the  observance ;  and  the  restriction  might  as  well 
be  withdrawn,  as  far  as  the  interests  of  the  unfortunate 
owners  are  concerned ;  any  chance  of  property  of  the 
least  value  ever  finding  its  way  back  to  them  being  too 
remote  to  be  entertained.  The  silks  and  furs  in  the 
hospital  of  the  31st  are  only  safe  for  the  time,  as  their 
removal  would  be  too  overt  a  violation  of  a  general 
order,  the  breach  of  which  on  the  part  of  a  soldier 
subjects  him  to  flogging.  From  all  accounts,  notwith- 
standing the  poor  appearance  of  the  place,  a  large 
amount  of  valuable  property  has  fallen  into  the  hands 
of  the  occupying  force."  ^  And  Mr  Swinhoe — ^also  an 
eye-witness — completes  the  picture,  by  mention  of  the 
"  few  natives  that  still  lingered  by  their  usurped  domiciles, 
quietly  watching  with  the  eye  of  despair  the  destruction 
of  all  the  property  they  possessed  in  the  world,  and  the 
ruin  of  their  hopes,  perhaps  for  ever."  * 

Changkeawhan,  we  learn  from  the  Chaplain  to  the 

*  Ufe  of  Sir  Harry  Parkes^  voL  i.,  pp.  358-9. 

•  Britisk  Anns  in  China  and  Japan^  1864,  Dr  D.  F.  Rennie,  M.D., 

p.  79. 

'  Narrative  of  the  North  China  Campaign  of  1860,  i86i,|Robert 
Swinhoe,  p.  64. 


148         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Forces,  "was  the  first  place  given  up  to  the  troops  to 
plunder  by  the  Commander-in-Chief,  and  everyone 
thousrht,  very  justly,  as  a  punishment  to  the  Chinese 
for  their  treachery.  The  Indian  troops,  the  Hong- 
Kong  coolies,  and  the  Indian  camp-followers,  showed 
their  superiority  to  the  British  soldier  in  the  practice  of 
looting.  The  natives  and  Indians  knew  where  to  look 
for  valuables,  and  would  turn  a  house  inside  out  while 
the  soldier  was  thinking  how  to  get  in.  I  did  not  hear 
of  anything  of  real  value  being  found,  nor  did  the 
benefit  which  accrued  to  our  own  forces  from  the 
plunder  equal  the  one-thousandth  part  of  the  punish- 
ment inflicted  on  the  Chinese  by  the  losses."^ 

"  The  village  of  Sinho  suffered  similarly ;  and  though 
some  measure  of  discipline  was  maintained  on  the 
subsequent  march  to  Peking,  the  French,  when  they 
reached  the  Summer  Palace,  abandoned  themselves  to 
a  mania  of  looting  and  destruction.  These  buildings 
contained  a  vast  collection  of  China's  choicest  objects 
of  art.  .  .  .  The  plunderers  broke  everything  they  had 
no  mind  to  remove,  or  no  education  to  appreciate.  For 
years  afterwards,  bric-k-brac  dealers  in  Paris  and 
London  were  able  to  offer  for  sale  unique  'curios  from 
the  Summer  Palace.'"^ 

Nor  do  the  British  appear  to  have  been  anything 
behind  their  French  comrades  —  having  evidently 
improved  since  the  days  of  Changkeawhan — if  we 
may  judge  by  results.  "  The  British  share  of  plunder," 
we  are  told,  ''was  all  arranged  in  the  hall  of  the  large 
llama  temple,  where  the  Head  Quarters  Staff  were 
quartered,  and  a  goodly  sight  it  was,"  including  "  two 
or  three  of  the  Emperor's  state  robes  .  .  .  the  sale 
continued  for  three  whole  days.  .  .  .  Fancy  the  sale  of 
an  emperor's  effects  beneath  the  walls  of  the  capital  of 
his  empire,"  ejaculates  Mr  Swinhoe.' 

^  How  we  got  to  Peking^  1862,  Rev.  R.  J.  L.  M'Ghee,  Chaplain  to 
the  Forces,  p.  166.  *  Brinkley,  vol  xii.,  p.  33 

'  North  China  Campaign^  pp.  310-11. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  149 

"  That  a  good  foundation  has  been  laid  by  our  last 
China  expedition  for  future  missionary  exertions  in  this 
country,  I  fully  believe;"  writes  the  Chaplain  to  the 
Forces,  once  more,  "a  certain  amount  of  respect  for  us, 
which  should  render  such  labours  at  least  tolerably  safe, 
must  be  secured.  I  think  that  this  has  been  done,  and 
all  friends  to  that  gjeat  and  most  important  cause  must 
rejoice  in  the  fact;  it  remains  for  us  now  to  use  pro- 
portionate exertions  in  order  to  reap  the  vast  extent  of 
harvest  ground  which  has  been  thus  opened  to  us."^ 

England — while  preparing  for  the  campaign  of 
i860 — obtained  from  the  Viceroy  of  Kwantung,  the 
capital  of  which — Canton — was  in  British  military 
occupation,  a  perpetual  lease  of  Kowloon  peninsula ; 
and,  in  the  final  settlement  of  accounts,  8,000,000  taels ; 
besides  ;^38so  for  each  British  subject  taken  prisoner 
in  the  white-flag  incident. 

France  took,  for  her  share,  8,000,000  taels;  and 
;^6o6o  for  each  French  subject ;  *  and  formally  assumed 
the  Protectorate  of  Chinese  Christians,  by  securing  the 
restoration  **  to  the  Minister  of  France,  all  the  Catholic 
churches,  with  their  cemeteries,  their  lands,  and  their 
dependencies,  which  were  confiscated  in  the  provinces 
and  in  the  capital  of  the  Empire  from  the  Christians 
who  formerly  possessed  them."* 

By  mutual  agreement,  the  French  Text  of  the  treaty 
was  to  be  recognised  as  the  authentic  version.  Art.  VI. 
reads  as  follows : — 

French  Tsxt.  Chinese  Text. 

''In  confonnity  with  the  Im-  ** Every  Chinese  of  whatsoever 

penal  Edict  issued  the  28th  March  condition^  is  free  to  embrace  the 

1846^    by    the    August    Emperor  Catholic  religion  and  to  propagate 

Taoukwang,    the     religious     and  //.    It  is  pi^rmitted  to  Christians  to 

charitable    establishments    which  meet    in   assembly   and  to   build 

were       confiscated      from      the  churches  for  offering  up  prayers, 

*  How  we  got  to  Peking^  p.  364. 
'  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  pp.  37-9. 

*  Baron  Gros,  quoted  in  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.»  p.  41. 


150         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

French  Text.  Chikese  Text. 

Christians  during  the  persecution  Anyone  daring  unjustly  to  pursue 
of  which  they  were  the  victims,  Christians  and  to  take  them  shall 
shall  be  restored  to  their  pro-  undergo  the  punishment  he  merits. 
prietors  by  the  instrumentality  of  Catholic  temples,  colleges,  ceme- 
his  Excellency  the  Minister  of  teries,  houses,  fields,  and  all  other 
France  in  China,  to  whom  the  possessions  formerly  confiscated 
Imperial  Government  will  cause  during  the  persecution,  shall  be 
them  to  be  delivered,  with  the  restored  to  the  French  Ambassador 
cemeteries  and  the  other  edifices  residing  in  Peking,  who  will  make 
appertaining  to  them." '  restitution  of  them  to  the  proper 

persons.  French  missionaries  shall 
have  liberty  to  rent  land  in  all  the 
provinces  of  the  empire^  to  buy  and 
to  construct  houses  as  they  find 
good?'^ 

"The  italicised  portions,"  says  Captain  Brinkley, 
"were  interpolated  by  the  French  missionary  who 
made  the  translation.  The  fraud  they  represent  is  bad 
enougrh.  Had  such  a  piece  of  chicanery  been  practised 
by  Chinese,  its  denunciation  by  Western  nations  would 
have  been  couched  in  unmeasured  terms.  But  the  title 
to  recover  churches,  cemeteries,  and  charitable  buildings 
confiscated  during  the  persecutions,  did  not  rest  on  this 
forgery,  neither  did  the  forgers  insert  anything  whatever 
about  payment  for  confiscated  property.  There  is  no 
reason  to  magnify  the  disgrace."* 

"In  point  of  fact,"  says  Mr  Holcombe,  "the  inter- 
polation was  an  act  of  useless  and  unnecessary  dis- 
honesty, even  under  the  plea  that  the  end  justifies  the 
means.  This  can  be  readily  shown.  In  a.d.  1724*  the 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries,  who  had  built  up  a  large 
and  influential  following  in  China,  were  expelled  from 
the  country,  being  charged  with  seeking  to  interfere 
with  affairs  of  State,  and  with  disobedience  to  the 
commands  of  the  Emperor.  The  property  of  the 
Church,  amounting  to  many  millions  of  dollars  in  value, 
was  either  confiscated  by  the  Government,  or  taken 

^  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  p.  43.  ^  Ibid,^  pp.  43-4.  ^  Ibid.^  p.  44. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHINA  151 

possession  of  without  legal  process  by  individuals.  In 
a  French  treaty  with  China,  made  some  twelve  years 
previous  to  that  of  Tientsin,  it  had  been  agreed  by  the 
Chinese  Government,  that  all  such  property,  upon 
proper  identification  and  proof  of  ownership,  should  be 
restored  'to  the  congregations  of  Chinese  Christians,' 
to  whom  it  had  belonged.  Under  this  stipulation, 
property  of  immense  value  in  the  aggregate  was 
restored  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  in  China ;  and 
bishops  and  priests  were  placed  in  possession  of  it.  If 
there  was  anything  irregular,  or  unexpected  by  the 
Chinese,  in  the  issue  of  the  transaction,  which  must  be 
doubted,  it  lies  in  the  restoration  of  the  property  to  the 
hands  of  the  foreign  priests  and  bishops,  instead  of  *  to 
the  congregations  of  Chinese  Christians,'  as  provided 
for  in  the  treaty.  The  'favoured  nation  clause,'  found 
in  all  treaties  with  China,  opened  the  way  for  Protestant 
missionaries  to  follow  the  Catholic.  The  notorious 
interpolated  clause  in  the  French  Treaty  of  1858  has 
played  no  part  whatever  in  the  establishment  of 
missionaries  in  interior  districts."^ 

"The  French  Minister  in  Peking  officially  notified 
the  Chinese  authorities,  that  his  Government  recog- 
nised the  spurious  nature  of  the  clause,  and  would  claim 
no  rights  under  it."  * 

Commenting  on  the  previous  French  Treaty  referred 
to  above.  Rev.  Dr  Martin  remarks  : — **  To  France 
belongs  the  honour  of  inaugurating  the  new  era  of 
religious  freedom.  The  English,  whose  guns  had 
prostrated  the  barriers  in  the  way  of  commerce,  in 
making  their  treaty,  two  years  earlier,  thought  of 
nothing  but  trade.  It  might  not,  indeed,  have  been 
expedient  to  demand  absolute  freedom  of  religion, 
but  why  did  they  not  remember  those  brave  mission- 

1  The  Reed  Chinese  Question^  1901,  Chester  Holcombe  (for  many 
years  Interpreter,  Secretary  of  Legation,  and  Acting  Minister  of  the 
United  States  in  Peking),  pp.  160-1. 

*  Ibid,^  p.  160. 


152         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

aries,    and   their   faithful   adherents   in   the   hour   of 
victory  ?  "  ^ 

Mr  Michie,  though  he  does  not  ask  the  same 
question,  is  evidently  of  the  same  opinion.  "  Whatever 
may  be  said  of  that  of  other  nations,  the  intercourse  of 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  with  China,  from 
the  earliest  period  to  the  latest,  has  had  no  other  object 
than  trade  between  the  nations,  and  therefore  all  the 
steps  in  that  intercourse  must  be  judged  in  their  relation 
to  the  promotion  of  international  commerce."* 

It  only  remains  to  notice  the  part  taken  by  Russia  in 
the  education  of  China.  **  By  the  Treaty  of  Nertchinsk, 
concluded  in  1689,  she  had  been  excluded  from  the 
navigation  of  the  Amur.  .  .  .  England's  war  with 
China  in  1842  had  shown  the  world  how  helpless  the 
Middle  Kingdom  was  as  a  belligerent.  Muravioff  [the 
Governor-General  of  Eastern  Siberia],  therefore,  deem- 
ing that  accomplished  facts  would  be  much  more 
eloquent  than  diplomatic  representations,  ignored  the 
Treaty  of  Nertchinsk,  and  sailed  down  the  Amur  from 
Transbaikalia  at  the  head  of  a  large  flotilla.  That  was 
in  1854,  just  when  theTaipings  were  shaking  the  throne 
of  China,  and  the  '  City  Question  *  was  becoming  acute 
at  Canton."  In  1858  a  treaty  was  signed  at  Aigun  in 
North  Manchuria,  which  "made  Russia  mistress  of  the 
whole  northern  bank  of  the  Amur  ;  and  on  the  south  of 
the  river,  it  secured  to  her,  pending  final  delimitation, 
equal  proprietary  rights  with  China  in  the  maritime 
region  facing  Saghalien,  Yezo,  and  the  north-west  coast 
of  the  main  island  of  Japan."  In  i860,  a  further  treaty 
was  concluded  in  Peking,  by  which  Russia  obtained  the 
"right  of  sole  ownership"  over  "the  region  extending 
along  the  sea-coast  south  of  the  river  s  [Amur]  mouth," 
and  "  Muravioff  had  not  waited  for  the  conclusion  of  the 
convention.  Four  months  previously  he  had  surveyed 
the  coast  of  the  coveted  region,  had  chosen,  on  the 

»  A  Cycle  of  Cathay,  1896^  W.  A.  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  pp.  440-1. 
^  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  vol.  L,  p.  167. 


THE  EDUCATION  OP  CHINA  163 

extreme  south,  a  position  for  a  new  settlement,  which  he 
called  Vladivostok  (Master  of  the  Orient),  and  had 
taken  military  possession  of  the  place-"  ^ 

Chinese  opinion  of  foreigners  at  the  close  of  the 
pre-conventional  period  "was  clearly  set  forth  in  a 
brochure  compiled  by  way  of  answer  to  Protestant 
propagandism.  It  was  absurd,  the  writer  declared, 
that  persons  so  miserably  deficient  themselves  should 
pretend  to  improve  the  inhabitants  of  the  Celestial 
Empire.  The  foreigner  lacked  four  out  of  the  five 
cardinal  virtues.  He  lacked  benevolence,  because,  for 
his  own  benefit,  he  introduced  a  poisonous  drug  among 
the  Chinese.  He  lacked  righteousness,  because  he  sent 
his  fleets  and  armies  to  rob  others  of  their  possessions. 
He  lacked  the  sense  of  propriety,  because  he  allowed 
men  and  women  to  mix  in  society  and  to  walk  arm-in-arm 
in  the  streets.  He  lacked  wisdom,  because  he  rejected 
the  teachings  of  antiquity.  The  only  good  quality  to 
which  he  could  lay  claim  was  truth.  Claiming  to  preach 
to  the  world,  he  himself  lacked  filial  piety,  since  he  forgot 
his  parents  as  soon  as  they  were  dead,  buried  them 
in  deal  coffins  only  an  inch  thick,  and  never  sacrificed 
to  their  manes^  or  burned  a  scrap  of  gold  paper  for  their 
support  in  the  other  world.  Lavishing  money  to  cir- 
culate books  for  reforming  the  age,  he  himself  showed 
his  disrespect  for  literature  by  trampling  it  under  foot. 
Manifestly  he  was  inferior  to  the  Chinese,  and  not  fit 
to  instruct  them." ' 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  pp.  45-9. 
'  IhiiLy  voL  xi.,  pp.  161 -2. 


CHAPTER  II 

china:  the  land  of  promise 

"  The  Chinese  object,"  remarks  Mr  Holcombe,  "  perhaps 
unreasonably,  to  the  application  to  their  Empire  of  those 
two  well-known  declarations  said  to  have  been  made  by 
the  unanimous  voice  of  a  religious  body:  'Resolved, 
that  the  Righteous  shall  inherit  the  earth.  Resolved, 
that  we  are  the  Righteous.'  "^ 

And  so: — "With  capital  for  which  no  employment 
can  be  found,  workers  idle  and  on  short  time;  trade 
generally  bad  and  wages  low  in  England,  what  a  land 
of  promise  does  China  appear!  The  feeling  of  the 
English  merchants  in  China  is  evidenced,  according 
to  Mr  Colquhoun,  by  the  following  expression  of  one 
of  them,  *I  am  not  working  for  posterity,'  that  is  to 
say,  merchants  go  to  China  to  make  as  much  money 
as  possible,  by  the  existing  means  of  trade,  as  soon  as 
possible."* 

This  view  is  perfectly  conceivable  from  a  European 
standpoint.  But  there  is  another  way  of  looking  at 
things  Chinese  submitted  by  the  late  Mrs  Bishop. 

"In  much  talk  about  'open  doors'  and  'spheres  of 
influence'  and  'interest,'  in  much  greed  for  ourselves, 
not  always  dexterously  cloaked,  and  much  jealousy  and 
suspicion  of  our  neighbours,  and  in  much  interest  in 
the  undignified  scramble  for  concessions  in  which  we 
have  been  taking  our  share  at  Pekin,  there  is  a  risk  of 
our  coming  to  think  only  of  markets,  territory,  and 

^  Chinees  past  and  future^  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  p.  144. 
*  The  Opening  of  Chinoy  1884,  Introduction  by  S.  H.  Loutitt,  p.  ix. 

164 


CHINA  :  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  155 

railroads,  and  ignoring  the  men  who,  for  two  thousand 
years,  have  been  making  China  worth  scrambling  for. 
It  may  be  that  we  go  forward  with  a  '  light  heart,*  along 
with  other  European  empires,  not  hesitating,  for  the 
sake  of  commercial  advantages,  to  break  up  in  the  case 
of  a  fourth  part  of  the  human  race  the  most  ancient 
of  earth's  existing  civilisations,  without  giving  any 
equivalent."^ 

Hence,  "too  much  has  been  written  about  China 
from  a  purely  foreign  standpoint.  The  shelves  are  full  of 
books — notably  English — telling  with  great  detail  and 
much  ingenuity  what  China  wants,  what  China  desires, 
and  what  is  best  for  China,  with  the  sole  object  of  pro- 
moting the  interests  of  British  commerce,  and  thwarting 
the  designs  of  Russia  and  every  other  Power.  But 
regarding  what  China  needs  /or  Chinas  sake  [italics 
in  original]  the  world  of  letters  is  markedly  silent."* 

Precisely;  the  Chinese  themselves  are  in  danger 
of  being  overlooked,  and  their  opinions  disregarded, 
although  it  is  their  country  which  is  under  consideration. 

A  few  years  ago,  the  Inspector-General  of  Chinese 
Customs  explained  that  the  foreigner  and  his  merchan- 
dise were  not  wanted,  "  not  that  the  Chinese  Govern- 
ment actively  opposed  foreign  commerce,  but  that  the 
Chinese  people  did  not  require  it.  Chinese  have  the 
best  food  in  the  world,  rice;  the  best  drink,  tea;  and 
the  best  clothing,  cotton,  silk,  and  fur.  Possessing 
these  staples,  and  their  innumerable  native  adjuncts, 
they  do  not  need  to  buy  a  penny's  worth  elsewhere ; 
while  their  Empire  is  in  itself  so  great,  and  they 
themselves  so  numerous,  that  sales  to  each  other 
make  up  an  enormous  and  sufficient  trade,  and  export 
to  foreign  countries  is  unnecessary."* 

1  Th€  Yangtue  Valley  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
p.  II. 

'  The  Real  Chinese  Quesiicn^  1901,  Chester  Holcombe,  p.  vi. 

'  These  from  the  Land  of  Simm^  1901,  Sir  Robert  Hart,  Bart., 
G.CM.G.,  p.  61. 


166         THE  CAtttOLiC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

And  one  who  writes  under  the  name  of  "  A  Chinese 
Official"  further  explains  that,  "as  we  are  not  led  to 
interfere  with  you  by  the  desire  to  convert  you,  so  we 
are  not  driven  to  do  so  by  the  necessity  of  trade. 
Economically  as  well  as  politically  we  are  sufficient  to 
ourselves.  What  we  consume  we  produce,  and  what 
we  produce  we  consume.  We  do  not  require  and  we 
have  not  sought  the  products  of  other  nations ;  and  we 
hold  it  no  less  imprudent  than  unjust  to  make  war  on 
strangers  in  order  to  open  their  markets.  A  society, 
we  conceive,  that  is  to  be  politically  stable,  must 
be  economically  independent,  and  we  regard  an  exten- 
sive foreign  trade  as  necessarily  a  source  of  social 
demoralisation."  ^ 

In  1885,  Mr  Boulger  expressed  the  opinion  that 
"while  most  persons  are  asserting  that  the  dislike  to 
build  railways  is  a  proof  of  China  s  backwardness  in 
the  scale  of  civilisation,  I  contend  that  there  are  many 
sound  arguments  to  justify  the  hesitation  shown  by 
the  Peking  Ministers  in  sanctioning  such  enterprises. 
It  may  be  admitted  that  railways  would  give  a  great 
impulse  to  foreign  trade,  and  that  consequently  the 
Chinese  would  derive  as  much  advantage  as  anyone 
else  from  the  construction;  but  the  Government  is 
guided  in  its  policy  by  other  considerations  as  well  as 
those  of  pecuniary  advantage  Even  without  railways, 
Chinese  commerce  has  reached  a  flourishing  point ;  and 
it  will  be  long  before  the  Peking  ministry  will  be  induced 
to  disturb  the  status  guo,  and  incur  possible  danger  for 
the  sake  of  benefiting  the  foreign  trade.  If  things  go 
on  at  their  present  rate,  the  Chinese  can  count  on 
certain  and  very  satisfactory  returns  as  a  balance  in 
their  favour  on  the  foreign  trade  of  the  country.  They 
have  little  to  gain,  and  perhaps  much  to  lose  by  attempt- 
ing to  disturb  the  arrangements  on  which  their  trade 
exists."* 

^  LetUrsfrom  a  Chinese  Official^  1903,  p.  12. 

'  Central  Asian  Questions^  1885,  Demetrius  C.  Boulger,  p.  170. 


CHINA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  157 

**  It  is  the  labour  question,"  Mr  Holcombe  tells  us, 
"which  forms  the  basis  of  the  most  serious  objection  of 
intelligent  Chinese  to  the  introduction  of  machine  work, 
and  rapid  transportation.  It  is  not  a  question  whether 
the  fears  and  arguments  which  influence  them  are  valid 
or  worthless.  It  is  enough  that  they  are  operative  and 
sufficient  with  them.  It  is  simply  impossible  to  convince 
them  that  a  machine  by  which  one  man  is  enabled  to  do 
the  productive  labour  often  can  be  anything  but  a  curse 
to  a  country  in  which,  after  the  most  patient  division 
and  sub-division,  arrangement  and  re-arrangement, 
there  still  is  not  to  be  found  an  amount  of  labour  suffi- 
cient to  clothe  each  subject  in  the  meanest  robes,  and  to 
feed  him  with  the  cheapest  food."  * 

Further  : — *'  Chinese  do  complain  that  foreign  com- 
petition in  China  s  coasting  trade  has  ruined  junk- 
owners."*  "The  native  capitalist  of  former  days  is  a 
beggar  now,  and  the  crowds  of  junkmen  he  employed, 
are  as  angry  with  their  Government  for  permitting  the 
foreigner  to  step  in  and  seize  such  local  trade  as  with 
the  foreigner  himself  for  doing  so."  * 

A  perusal  of  the  Report  on  the  Trade  of  Shanghai 
for  1876,  gives  us  the  advantage  of  Chinese  official 
opinion  on  foreign  competition  in  the  inland  commerce. 
In  it,  Mr  Consul  Davenport  quoted  from  a  Memorial  by 
Tseng  Kwo-Fan,  at  that  time  Viceroy  of  the  two 
Kiang  Provinces : — "  If  small  steamers  be  allowed  on 
inland  waters,  native  craft  of  every  size,  sailors,  and 
pilots  will  suffer ;  if  foreigners  are  allowed  to  construct 
telegraphs  and  railways,  owners  of  carts,  mules,  chairs, 
and  inns  will  suffer,  and  the  means  of  living  be  taken 
away  from  the  coolies.  The  same  may  be  said  of  all 
demands  of  foreigners,  except  the  working  of  coal 
mines;  it  would  enrich  China  to  borrow  foreign 
appliances  for  the  extracting  of  coal,  and  it  would 
appear  to  deserve  a  trial    If  foreigners  are  allowed  to 

>  Chincis  past  and  future^  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  pp.  11-12. 
*  These  from  ihe  Land  of  Sinim^  p.  i6i.  ^  Ibid^  p.  72. 


158         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

introduce  small  steamers,  railroads,  etc.,  they  will 
monopolise  the  whole  profits  of  the  country ;  if  our 
people  are  allowed  to  join  with  them  in  introducing 
them,  the  rich  will  benefit  at  the  expense  of  the  poor — 
neither  plan  is  practicable.  With  respect  to  the  points 
which  are  not  highly  obnoxious,  we  should  grant  them 
if  asked ;  it  is  only  as  to  railroads,  steamers,  salt,  and 
residence  in  the  interior  for  trade,  as  destructive  of 
our  people's  interests,  that  a  strenuous  fight  should 
be  made.  "^ 

Nearly  twenty  years  later.  Rev.  G.  W.  Clarke 
informs  us  that,  previous  to  the  fifty  years  before,  Yun- 
nan was  prosperous  by  reason  of  the  conveyance  of 
cotton  from  Burmah.  When  England  took  Lower 
Burmah,  steamers  carried  cotton  and  other  goods  to 
Canton  and  elsewhere,  and  now  [1894]  "there  is  very 
little  trade  through  the  province  from  Burmah.  Many 
Yun-nan  business  men  have  told  me  with  suppressed 
vexation,  '  Ah !  before  you  Foreigners  put  steamers  on 
the  Burmah  trade,  we  had  the  chance  of  making  plenty 
of  money,  but  now  it  is  hard  to  get  a  living.'  I  replied  : 
'  The  racecourse  for  wealth  is  open  to  all,  but  only  the 
fittest  horses  come  in  first.'  "* 

Eight  years  afterwards,  Mr  Nichols  could  say  : — "  A 
voyage  on  a  great  waterway  in  China  is  enough  to 
convince  anyone  that  there  is  considerable  foundation 
for  the  Chinese  argument  against  a  change  to  improved 
methods  of  transportation.  The  crude  and  unwieldy 
junks  on  the  Han  River  must  afford  the  means  of  liveli- 
hood to  hundreds  of  thousands  of  families.  Were  the 
river  to  be  dredged  so  as  to  be  navigable  for  steamers, 
or  were  it  to  be  paralleled  by  a  railroad,  all  of  these  men 
who,  directly  or  indirectly,  make  a  living  from  the  junks 
would  be  thrown  out  of  work.  In  any  other  country  in 
the  world  there  would  be  a  chance  of  their  finding 
employment  in  some  other  trade  or  business ;  but  this  is 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1878,  pp.  20-1. 

*  Kweichow  and  Yun-nan^  1894,  G.  W.  Clarke^  pp.  16-17. 


CHINA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  159 

impossible  in  China,  for  the  reason  that  the  division  of 
labour  is  fixed  and  permanent.  There  is  no  shifting  of 
the  centres  of  population,  or  the  opening  of  new  avenues 
of  industry."^ 

Again  : — *'  One  reads  in  the  reports  to  the  directors 
of  steamship  companies  of  the  improved  trade  with 
China  in  cotton-goods,  and  the  bright  outlook  all  along 
the  coast  from  Canton  to  Tientsin  and  Newchwang  in 
this  line  of  commerce,  but  no  one  reads  of  the  effect  of 
this  expansion  of  trade  upon  innumerable  millions  of 
Chinese  in  the  great  cotton-growing  plains  of  China. 
These  have  hitherto  been  just  able  to  make  a  scanty 
living  by  weaving."  Two  days  of  hard  work,  Dr 
Arthur  Smith  informs  us,  only  produce  enough  to 
purchase  the  barest  necessaries  of  life,  and  a  supply  of 
cotton  for  weaving — which  sometimes  goes  on  day  and 
night.  "But  now,  through  the  'bright  outlook'  for 
foreign  cotton-goods,  there  is  no  market  for  the  native 
product"  Nor  can  he  take  to  something  else,  for,  in 
China,  a  man  can  do  only  one  thing,  which  may  be  an 
hereditary  craft.  Multitudes,  who  own  no  loom,  used 
to  spin  cotton  thread ;  but  now,  owing  to  the  activity  of 
the  mills  elsewhere,  foreign  threads,  stronger  and 
cheaper  are  sent  to  China.  "There  are  those  who 
know  perfectly  well  that,  before  foreign  trade  came  to 
disturb  the  ancient  order  of  things,  there  was,  in 
ordinary  years  enough  to  eat  and  to  wear,  whereas  now 
[1901]  there  is  a  scarcity  in  every  direction,  with  a 
prospect  of  worse  to  come."* 

In  1903,  we  hear,  on  the  authority  of  Mr  Archibald 
Little,  that  "  the  natives  have  lately  established  cotton- 
mills,  which  pay  handsome  dividends,  and  with  which 
the  foreign-managed  mills  at  Shanghai  are  unable  to 
compete;  these  latter  are  now  (1903)  mostly  in  diffi- 
culties."^     Whether  any  portion   of  the  "handsome 

^  Through  Bidden  Shensi^  1902,  Francis  H.  Nichols,  pp.  304-5. 
^  Chif$a  in  Convulsiony  1901,  Arthur  H.  Smith,  voL  i.,  pp.  89,  90-1. 
^  The  FarEast^  1905,  Archibald  Little,  p.  114. 


160         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

dividends  "  finds  its  way  to  the  **  great  cotton-growing 
plains  '*  is  not  stated. 

One  more  example : — "  Myriads  of  farmers  grow  the 
beans  and  pea-nuts  out  of  which  illuminating  oils  are 
made.  But  since  American  kerosine  was  introduced  in 
1864,  its  use  has  become  well-nigh  universal,  and  the 
families  who  depended  upon  the  bean  oil  and  pea-nut  oil 
market  are  starving.  ...  All  this  is,  of  course,  inevit- 
able," remarks  Mr  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  "and  indeed 
for  the  best  interests  of  the  people  of  China  themselves, 
but  it  enables  us  to  understand  why  so  many  of  the 
Chinese  resent  the  introduction  of  foreign  goods.  "^ 

In  1890,  Mrs  Arthur  H.  Smith  gave  the  Missionary 
Conference  two  examples  of  "the  possible  depths  of 
Chinese  poverty."  In  the  first,  the  wedding  of  their  son 
found  the  family  too  poor  to  buy  a  fifteen-cent  mat  for 
the  kang  of  the  bride.  "They  borrowed  one.  The 
new  wife,  who  had  a  comfortable  bed-quilt  as  part  of 
her  dowry,  felt  guilty  to  be  warm  while  her  new  mother- 
in-law  shivered  under  a  tattered  excuse  for  a  comforter. 
After  the  rest  were  asleep,  the  bride  would  steal  out  of 
the  other  room,  put  her  nice  warm  covering  over  her 
new  mother,  and  go  back  to  her  own  comfortless  bed  to 
shiver.  In  another  village,  a  dispute  as  to  who  should 
bear  the  expense  of  less  than  two  cents  worth  of  oil  an 
evening,  has  been  known  to  break  up  a  religious 
meeting.  '  But  the  people  are  not  all  as  poor  as  that,' 
says  your  new  missionary,  whom  no  doubts  appal,  and 
no  facts  suppress."  And  Mrs  Smith  continues  that : — 
"  Rightly  to  understand  Chinese  life,  we  must  turn  our 
backs  on  the  great  facts  of  political  economy,  and  move 
the  hands  of  the  world's  great  clock  back  to  the  times 
of  our  great-grandmothers."  * 

China,  then,  would  seem  to  have  no  very  pressing 
economic  reasons  to  desire  the  presence  of  the  foreigner ; 
and  perhaps  no  kindly  remembrances  of  past  favours 

^  New  Forces  in  Old  China^  1904,  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  p.  137. 
'  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890^  p.  250. 


CHINA :  THE  LAND  OF  PBOMISE  161 

to  induce  her  to  love  him  when  there,  since,  in  the  words 
of  Captain  Mahan,  "every  step  forward  in  the  march 
that  has  opened  China  to  trade  has  been  stained  by 
pressure;  the  most  important  have  been  the  result  of 
actual  wan  Commerce  has  won  its  way  by  violence, 
actual  or  feared.  .  .  ."^ 

"Thus  ended  the  China  War  of  i860,"  remarks 
Lord  Wolseley,  "the  shortest,  most  brilliant,  and 
most  successful  of  all  that  we  have  waged  with  that 
country.  Let  us  hope  that  it  may  be  the  last,  by 
procuring  for  our  merchants  a  perpetual  immunity 
from  those  acts  of  oppression  and  violence  which  have 
led  to  all  our  disputes  with  the  Pekin  Government. 
May  its  prophylactic  effects  enable  us  to  trade  on 
freely  at  every  port  along  the  great  sea-board  of  the 
Empire,  and  so  open  out  new  channels  for  our 
commercial  enterprise.  It  has  cost  us  a  large  sum 
of  money,  but,  unlike  many  of  our  expensive  £ur(4)ean 
wars,  we  may  with  justice  look  forward  to  a  liberal 
return  for  what  we  have  expended.  .  .  .  The  one  great 
object  which  we  have  ever  had  in  view  there  has  been 
freedom  of  action  for  our  merchants,  and  unrestricted 
permission  to  trade  with  all  parts  of  the  Empire  To 
prevent  this  last-mentioned  object  has  ever  been  the 
aim  of  all  Chinese  politicians."^ 

And,  when  we  have  contemplated  —  to  use  the 
energetic  language  of  Mr  Will,  of  the  Baltimore  Sun 
— "  the  spectacle  of  Europe  parcelling  out  the  Empire, 
as  if  it  were  a  plum-cake,"^  we  shall,  perhaps,  think  the 
foreigner  has,  of  late  years,  given  China  less  cause  to 
r^^ard  him  with  favour  than  ever  before. 

We  left  Canton  in  foreign  military  occupation,  and 
it  so  remained  for  three  years  and  ten  months.  The 
occupying  force  "not  only  refrained    from  wholesale 

1  The  Problem  of  Asict^  1900,  Captain  A.  T.  Mahan,  U.S.N.,  p.  169. 
«  Narrative  of  the  War  with  China  in  i860,  1862,  Lt.-CoL  G.  J. 
Wolseley,  pp.  323-4- 

*  World-Crisis  in  China^  1900^  Allen  S.  Will,  p.  106. 

L 


162  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

excesses,  but  even  employed  native  officials  todischarsre 
official  functions."^  There  were  sundry  attempts 
made  by  "co-operative  corps"  to  recover  the  place. 
*'* Dirty  vagabonds'  and  'dastards,'"  says  Captain 
Brinkley,  "were  the  epithets  that  seemed  good  to 
Consul  Parkes  for  describing  men  who,  had  the  scene 
been  laid  in  an  Occidental  country,  would  have  been 
called  '  heroes '  and  *  patriots ' ;  and,  in  the  eyes  of  the 
same  official,  an  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  Chinese  to 
defend  their  own  hearths  and  homes  against  a  foreign 
invader  became  '  a  gratuitous  piece  of  impertinence. '  So 
singularly  perverted  do  the  acts  of  Orientals  appear  to 
many  Europeans,  otherwise  just  and  benevolent  men."* 

Mr  Colquhoun  informs  us  that  "the  first  Prussian 
expedition  was  in  1861,  under  the  Count  von  Eulenberg. 
Some  years  later,  German  traders  in  China  suggested 
that  their  Government  should  seize  a  portion  of  Chinese 
territory,  Formosa  or  Corea,  in  order  to  found  a 
*  German  Australia.'  Treaties  were  concluded  in 
1 86 1  and  1880.  But  nothing  was  done  in  this  direction 
until  Kiachau  was  occupied."* 

"How  easily  public  opinion  concerning  us  is  formed," 
writes  Professor  Raphael  Pump^Uy,  "was  well  shown 
in  the  Province  of  Hunan  in  1862.  An  English  gun- 
boat at  Hankau  burned  a  junk  which  was  conveying 
soldiers  to  Nanking.  The  soldiers  had  brutally 
assaulted  an  Englishman,  and  with  a  precipitation 
in  keeping  with  the  old  retaliation  policy  the  junk 
was  burned.  But  the  vessel  was  private  property, 
having  been  impressed  in  Hunan  by  the  braves ;  and 
its  destruction,  instead  of  being  a  punishment  of  the 
offenders,  incensed  the  whole  population  of  Eastern 
Hunan.  Knowing  no  difference  among  foreigners, 
the  inhabitants  of  that  province  visited  on  the  head  of 
the  Catholic  missionaries  the  offence  of  the  English 

>  Chifui^  etc,^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  vol  xii.,  p.  51-2. 

'  Ibid,^  pp.  52-4. 

^  China  in  Transformation^  1898,  Archibald  B.  Colquhoun,  p.  45. 


CHINA :  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  163 

gun-boat ;  destroying  the  mission,  and  barely  allowing 
the  priests  to  escape  alive.  So  strong  was  the  hatred 
towards  the  foreigner — a  feeling  first  communicated 
along  the  great  transit  route  from  Canton,  and 
increased  by  the  blind  act  of  retaliation — that  in  1863, 
the  writer  found  it  impossible  to  penetrate  to  Southern 
Hunan  with  safety."  ^ 

At  the  end  of  1867,  Sir  Rutherford  Alcock — then 
Minister  in  Peking — thus  commented  on  the  situa- 
tion:— "Although  the  general  aspect  of  affairs  is 
very  unsatisfactory  and  unpromising,  I  believe  there  is 
a  leaven  at  work  among  the  ruling  classes,  and  more 
especially  in  the  Foreign  Board  here,  if  not  in  the 
palace  itself,  which  forbids  despondency.  If  only  means 
can  be  found  of  keeping  from  them  all  foreign  meddling 
and  attempts  at  dictation,  there  is  yet  ground  of  hope. 
But  these  rouse  strong  instincts  of  resistance  and 
national  pride,  giving  fresh  force  to  the  retrograde  and 
anti-foreign  party,  while  at  the  same  time  it  paralyses  all 
hopeful  effort  in  those  more  favourable  to  progress,  from 
the  fear  of  its  being  made  a  new  pretext  on  the  part  of 
one  or  more  foreign  Powers,  and  a  degree  of  interference 
with  their  internal  affairs  which  affects  their  sovereign 
rights  as  an  independent  nation.  Governing  under 
an  incessant  menace  of  this  interference,  wounded  in 
their  anwurpropre,  and  irritated  with  a  sense  of  humilia- 
tion in  the  inability  to  resist,  they  do  nothing.  Great 
changes  might  be  looked  for  at  no  distant  date,  I  am 
satisfied,  but  for  the  ever-recurring  obstacle — a 
veritable  bite  noir  to  the  Chinese.  No  nation  likes 
interference  of  a  foreign  Power  in  its  internal  affairs, 
however  well  intentioned  it  may  be,  and  China  is  no 
exception  to  the  rule.  ...  I  am  thoroughly  convinced 
they  would  go  much  faster  and  better  if  left  alone."  * 

France  took  a  conspicuous  part  in  China  between 

^  Across  America  and  Asia^  1870,  Raphael  Pumpelly  (Prof.,  Hav. 
Univ.),  p.  354. 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (5X  i87i»  p*  57* 


164         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

i860  and  1900.  What  she  meant,  M.  Louis  de  Carn6, 
as  quoted  by  Mr  Colquhoun,  leaves  us  in  no  sort  of 
uncertainty: — "The  force  of  circumstances,  and  the 
weakness  of  the  Chinese  themselves  .  •  .  enable  us  to 
foresee  the  dismemberment  of  that  ancient  Empire.  In 
presence  of  such  an  eventuality,  France  should  be  pre- 
pared. ...  It  is  absolutely  necessary  that  she  should 
exercise  a  paramount  influence  in  Tonquin,  which  is 
for  her  the  Key  of  China  [italics  his],  and  that,  without 
hurrying  by  any  impatience,  the  course  of  events,  she 
should  show  her  flag  to  the  people  whose  protectorate 
may  some  day  fall  into  her  hands."  ^ 

"But  the  service  she  exacted  from  religion  as  a 
pretext  for  drawing  the  sword,"  says  Captain  Brinkley, 
"cannot  be  passed  without  notice.  She  took  up  arms 
against  the  Taipings,  because  they  had  killed  one  of 
her  priests,  and  destroyed  images  in  Roman  Catholic 
churches.  She  took  up  arms  against  China,  in  con- 
junction with  England,  because  a  priest  had  been  done 
to  death  by  Chinese  officials  in  Kwangsi.  She  took 
up  arms  against  Cochin  China  in  i860,  directing  her 
troops  thither  after  their  withdrawal  from  Peking,  in 
order  to  check  persecutions  of  Christians,  and  to  bring 
them  under  French  protection.  And  the  ag^essive 
extension  of  her  territorial  acquisitions  in  Cochin  China 
led  her  to  Tonquin  in  1884,  involving  her  in  a  war  with 
China.  ..."  Owing  "to  the  harsh  claims  advanced 
by  her  in  Shanghai,  in  1874,  a  serious  riot  occurred. . . . 
The  French  attempted,  in  1874,  to  carry  out  a  project 
of  road  construction,  involving  the  removal  of  a  Chinese 
pagoda,  where  were  placed  numerous  coffins  containing 
corpses  awaiting  ultimate  removal  to  their  native  place, 
Ningpo.  Nothing  could  have  been  more  sacrilegious 
in  Chinese  eyes,  and  the  result  was  a  riot  which  led  to 
the  temporary  abandonment  of  the  project.  The  year 
1898,  however,  saw  its  renewal  with  greater  insistence 
than  ever ;  and  on  this  occasion  the  French  again  em- 
^  Quoted  in  China  in  Transformation^  pp.  44-5» 


CHINA :  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  165 

ployed  force,  killing  some  eighteen  Chinese,  and  wounding 
many  others.  Natives  of  the  adjoining  province  of  Fuh- 
kien  owned  the  pagoda  in  question,  and  to  the  anti-foreign 
feeling  thus  engendered  in  that  province  is  apparently 
attributable  a  terrible  massacre  of  Christians  which 
took  place  there  two  years  later.  At  the  door  of  French 
agression  in  Annam  must  also  be  indirectly  laid  the 
burning  of  thirteen  mercantile  establishments  in  Canton 
in  1883,  and  the  wrecking  of  eighteen  Protestant 
churches  in  the  same  city  and  its  environs  in  1884."^ 

A  year  or  two  later.  Great  Britain  sought  to  occupy 
a  portion  of  Chinese  territory  known  as  Port  Hamilton. 
This  being  understood,  the  following  from  Earl  Granville 
to  Mr  O'Conor  in  Peking  explains  itself: — "Dr 
Macartney  has  been  instructed  by  the  Marquis  Tseng 
to  communicate  the  following:  'The  Chinese  Govern- 
ment would  be  much  gratified  had  circumstances  per- 
mitted their  meeting  the  views  of  H.M.  Government 
in  the  matter,  of  the  proposed  occupation ;  but  in  view 
of  the  Russian  Minister  in  Peking  having  given  the 
Yamin  to  understand  that,  should  the  Chinese 
Government  consent  to  a  British  occupation  of  the 
islands  forming  Port  Hamilton,  the  Russian  Govern- 
ment would  feel  it  necessary  to  occupy  some  other 
island  or  portion  of  the  kingdom  of  Korea ;  also,  that 
in  view  of  Japan  following  the  same  course,  the  Chinese 
Government  regrets,  etc' "  * 

As  evidence  of  the  march  of  events  about  1895,  the 
Carte  Spiciale — a  map  of  China  issued  in  Paris — 
deserves  mention.  "It  shows,  among  other  things, 
the  so-called  'spheres  of  influence'  of  the  various 
Powers  in  China,"  and  "the  partitioning  of  her  terri- 
tories among  three  of  the  Great  Powers  of  the  Occident 
is  openly  projected  without  the  slightest  reference  to 
China's  volition.  Her  title  to  have  any  voice  in  her 
own  dissection  never   received    the   least   recognition 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xiL,  pp.  149-50- 1. 

'  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1887,  p,  4. 


166         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

from  the  dissectors.  They  did  not  even  take  the 
trouble  to  conceal  their  designs  from  her;  and  during 
the  last  five  years  of  the  nineteenth  century  every 
Chinese  statesman  and  official  had  the  pleasure  of 
learning  that  the  Powers  of  Europe,  whenever  it  suited 
their  convenience,  intended  to  cut  his  country  into 
pieces,  each  taking  a  portion  whose  dimensions  and 
location  had  been  already  fixed.  Yet,  all  the  while, 
these  very  Powers  insisted  on  being  treated  by  their 
future  victim  with  the  utmost  confidence  and  friendship, 
never  hesitating  to  accuse  her  of  Oriental  distrust  and 
racial  prejudice  if  she  displayed  the  least  reluctance 
to  be  friendly  and  liberal.  .  .  .  France,  always  artistic, 
had  set  the  fin-du-sihle  example  by  substituting 
'  state  of  reprisals '  for  the  vulgar  term  '  warfare  * ;  and 
now  her  rivals  in  civilisation  soothed  their  own 
consciences  and  displayed  their  ingenuity  by  trans- 
forming 'areas  of  aggression'  into  'spheres  of  in- 
fluence.' "  ^ 

Hence  we  find  that  at  the  Peace  Conference  at  the 
Hague,  in  1907,  during  the  discussion  of  "  Declarations 
of  War,"  "the  Chinese  military  delegate.  Colonel  Tinge, 
made  the  significant  remark  that  China's  experience 
showed  that  a  definition  of  war  itself  was  desirable,  for 
war  had  sometimes  been  made  under  the  name  of 
'expedition.'  The  Committee  saw  the  point,  and  there 
was  an  appreciative  ripple  of  laughter."  * 

"  Railway  and  mining  concessions,  and  the  manner 
of  procuring  them,  have  been  additional  causes  of 
rankling  discontent."  To  the  fact  that  the  Chinese 
are  not  yet  "educated  up"  to  the  "modern  improve- 
ments" of  the  West,  geomantic  superstition  is  added, 
"as  well  as  the  plainly  exasperating  fact  that  the  lines 
are  to  be  built  by  foreigners  and  operated  for  their 
profit.  .  .  .  Among  the  educated  classes,  too,  or  at  any 
rate  among  the  section  of  them  that  have  any  know- 

*  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  pp.  183-4-5, 
The  Tiines^  13th  July  1907. 


CHINA :  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  167 

ledge  of  foreigfn  affairs,  the  political  significance  of 
railway  concessions  granted  to  foreigners  must  be 
already  apprehended,  and  is  destined  to  become  clearer 
every  day.  Each  mile  of  foreign-owned  railway  in 
China  is  a  menace  to  her  independence."^ 

"Concessions  had  been  obtained,"  writes  Mr  Marshall 
Broomhall,  ''for  the  opening  up  of  railways  and  mines. 
Land  had  to  be  bought,  and  frequently  by  compulsory 
sale.  The  European  and  American  agents  were 
doubtless  upright  in  all  their  transactions,  and  paid 
handsomely  for  all  land  bought  The  seller,  however, 
only  received  a  small  portion  of  the  sum  paid.  The 
Chinese  officials  appointed  to  conduct  the  negotiations 
pocketed  the  larger  share.  That  the  foreign  surveyors 
were  ignorant  of  this  and  blameless,  does  not  lessen  the 
wrongs  of  the  people.  They  cursed  the  foreigner  and 
his  railway,  as  a  new  means  whereby  unprincipled 
officials  were  enabled  to  squeeze  them.  Graves  also 
had  to  be  removed,  the  feng-shui  was  ignored,  the 
good  luck  of  districts  was  spoiled.  Drought  and 
famine  followed— conclusive  proofs  of  heaven's  dis- 
pleasure."^ 

"The  railway  concession,"  Mr  Sargent  thinks,  "has 
been  responsible  for  many  volumes  of  diplomatic 
correspondence  during  recent  years,  and  in  the  battle 
of  concessions  England  and  the  United  States  have 
not  been  behindhand.  The  private  speculator  appears 
on  the  scene,  and  worries  the  Chinese  Government, 
but  behind  him  is  the  whole  diplomatic  force  of  his 
country." '  As  if  to  confirm  this  latter  statement,  we 
find  H.M.  Minister  in  Peking  writing  to  Lord  Salisbury 
on  23rd  July  1898,  "The  Battle  of  Concessions  is  not, 
in  my  opinion,  going  against  us."  ^ 

»  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  pp.  181-2-3. 

*  Martyred  Missionaries  of  the  China  Inland  Mission^  1901,  Marshall 
Broomhall,  B.A.,  p.  7. 

^  Anglo-Chinese  Commerce  and  Diplomacy^  x^ffj^  A.  J.  Sargent,  M.A., 
pp.  239-4a  ^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1899,  p.  169. 


168         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

And  H.E.  had  good  reason  to  say  so.  "  At  the  end 
of  1898,  the  British  [railway]  concessions  amounted  to 
2800  miles,  the  Russian  to  1530  miles,  the  German  to 
720  miles,  the  Belgian  to  650  miles,  the  French  to  420, 
the  American  to  300  miles  (reckoning  half  interests  at 
half  the  estimated  length  of  the  line)."  ^ 

As  a  modest  example  of  a  mining  concession :  a 
British  Syndicate  is  reported  to  have  obtained,  on  21st 
May  1898,  a  concession  granting  it — as  appears  from 
its  own  prospectus  of  6th  March  1900 — "the  sole  right 
for  60  years  to  mine  coal  throughout  20,000  square 
miles  in  Shansi  Province,  the  richest  coal  mining  area 
in  the  world,  whose  people  are  almost  wholly  dependent 
on  this  industry.  It  claims  that  throughout  this  vast 
area,  all  Chinese  mines  opened  since  21st  May  1898 
are  to  be  excluded  or  closed  down,  but,  'having  no 
desire  to  stand  upon  the  strict  letter  of  its  right,  it  is 
ready  to  concede  to  natives  mining  in  the  old  way  with 
native  methods  and  native  capital,  the  privilege  of 
working  the  mines,  so  long  as  they  do  not  invade  the 
Syndicate's  permit  area,  or  enter  into  competition  with 
the  Syndicate  outside  the  district'  .  .  •  The  Province 
asks,"  says  the  Peking  correspondent  of  the  Times^ 
"how  can  native  miners,  working  with  antiquated 
methods,  and  forbidden  for  60  years  to  use  foreign 
machinery,  be  able  to  exist  alongside  a  foreign  Syndi- 
cate with  the  latest  methods  and  machinery  ?  "  * 

It  is  satisfactory  to  learn  that  the  Shansi  Provincial 
authorities  have  recovered  from  the  Syndicate  the 
rights  granted  to  the  latter.  .  .  .  The  Syndicate 
accepts  2,700,000  taels  (approximately  £apo,ooo\ 
payable  in  four  years,  and  leaves  the  Province.* 

"It  is  also  of  interest,"  remarks  Dr  Reinsch,  "to 
inquire  what  missionaries  are  'worth  to  European 
nations,   industrially  and   commercially.    France   and 

*  AngUhChinese  Commerce^  etc^  p.  243. 

*  The  Times^  3rd  June  1907, 
'  lHd.y  i8th  January  1908. 


CfflNA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  169 

Germany  have  made  especially  successful  use  of  claims 
for  damages  done  to  missionaries  and  missions.  Never 
before  perhaps  has  so  much  material  value  been 
attached  to  ministers  of  the  Gospel  in  foreign  lands. .  .  . 
Thus  the  French  Consul  at  Choonking,  who  is  famous 
for  his  expansionist  intrigues,  demanded,  as  compensa- 
tion for  damages  inflicted  on  French  missions,  mining 
rights  in  six  districts  of  Szechuen,  extending  over  six 
degrees  of  longitude,  together  with  an  indemnity  of 
1,200,000  taels.  In  May  1898,  P^re  BerthoUet,  a 
French  missionary  in  Quangsi,  was  murdered.  Among 
other  compensations  for  this  outrage,  the  French 
Government  obtained  the  right  to  build  a  railway  from 
Pakhoi  to  Nanning."^  ''I  hear,"  wrote  Sir  C. 
Macdonald  on  12th  May  1898,  "that  the  demands 
made  by  the  French  Minister  for  compensation  for  the 
murder  reported  in  my  telegram  of  3rd  May  are:  (i) 
Right  to  build  a  railway  to  join  the  Lungchow  Nan- 
ning  Line  with  the  sea-coast ;  (2)  100,000  francs  as 
an  indemnity;  (3)  a  memorial  chapel  to  be  built  at 
Pakhoi."  « 

British  missionaries,  though  apparently  not  so 
valuable  in  a  commercial  sense,  are,  nevertheless, 
worth  considering:  ^.£'.,  ''The  claim  presented  by  the 
British  Government  in  connection  with  the  murder  of 
missionaries  at  Nan-chang  is  for  an  indemnity  of  7000 
taels,  and  for  the  opening  of  Wu-cheng-chi."' 

On  I  St  November  1897,  two  German  missionaries 
were  murdered  in  Shantung.  Germany  promptly 
required  Kiao-Chao  as  a  naval  base,*  besides  which : — 
**(i)  The  building  of  an  Imperial  Tablet  to  the  memory 
of  the  missionaries  who  were  murdered;  (2)  the 
families  of  the  murdered  missionaries  to  be  indemnified ; 

1  World  Politics  at  the  end  of  the  Nineteenth  Century^  190Q,  Paul  S. 
Reinscb,  Ph.D.y  LL.B.,  p.  146. 

'  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1899,  p.  80. 
^  The  Morning  Posty  30th  March  1906. 
^  Brinkley»  voL  zii.,  pp.  189- 19a 


170         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

(3)  The  Governor  of  Shantungf  to  be  degraded  per- 
manently; (4)  The  Chinese  Government  to  defray 
the  cost  of  the  German  occupation  of  Kiao-Chao; 
(5)  German  engineers  to  have  the  preference  in  the 
building  of  any  railway  which  China  may  construct  in 
the  Province  of  Shantung ;  and  also  in  the  working  of 
any  mine  which  may  exist  along  the  track  of  such 
railway."^ 

On  25th  March  1898,  Russia  obtained  from  China 
a  ''lease"  of  Port  Arthur  and  Talien,  in  the  Liaotung 
Peninsula.* 

''Within  a  few  days  of  Russia's  acquisitions  in 
Liaotung,  England  procured  from  China  a  lease  of 
Wei-hai-wei,  on  the  north  coast  of  the  Shantung 
Peninsula,  the  only  port  suitable  for  a  naval  station 
that  remained  to  China  in  the  northern  regions  of  her 
Empire."  * 

"Thus,  for  unhappy  China,  the  total  results  of  the 
murder  of  two  German  missionaries  were,  that  three  of 
the  Great  European  Powers  had  seated  themselves 
permanently  at  the  entrance  to  the  Gulf  of  Pechili,  thus 
commanding  the  maritime  approaches  to  the  metropolis ; 
that  the  whole  of  Manchuria,  a  territory  as  large  as 
France  and  Germany  combined,  might  now  be  counted 
a  Russian  possession ;  and  that  Germany  regarded  as 
the  legitimate  hinterland  of  Kiaochow,  the  province  of 
Shantung,  with  its  53,000  square  miles  of  area,  its 
37,000,000  of  inhabitants,  and  its  profoundly  sacred 
character  as  the  birthplace  of  Confucius  and  Mencius."f 

Great  Britain  now  "requested  a  lease"  of  200 
square  miles  of  territory  forming  the  hinterland  of 
the  Kowloon  promontory.  Both  here  and  at  Wei- 
hai-wei,  the  inhabitants,  attempting  to  resist  "these 
apparent  acts  of  aggression,"  had  to  be  shot  down  ;  and 
were,    moreover,  called    "rioters"    for    their    pains.^ 

1  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1898,  p.  3. 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  p.  192,  '  Ibid,^  p.  193. 

•  Ihid.^  p.  193,  »  TWi,  p.  194, 


CHINA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  171 

Elsewhere,  it  may  be  remembered,  men  similarly 
engaged  had  been  called — and  on  high  authority — ''a 
brave  people,  struggling — and  rightly  struggling — to  be 
free." 

In  like  manner  France  "requested  a  lease"  of  the 
Port  of  Kwang-chow  in  Kwangtung,  north  of  Hainan 
Island.^ 

Not  to  be  behindhand  in  the  scramble  for  China, 
Italy  proposed  to  acquire  a  port  in  Che*kiang  [San-men 
Bay].^  The  Peking  Administration  seem  to  have 
thought  that  the  line  must  be  drawn  somewhere,  and 
declined  to  entertain  the  proposal. 

Among  minor  dealings  with  China  about  this  time 
may  be  noted  the  following: — "The  principal  illegal 
taxes  at  present  collected  on  goods  in  transitu  are  Likin 
(a  sort  of  provincial  customs  due  levied  in  every 
province,  and  sometimes  in  nearly  every  district  of  a 
province).  .  .  .  The  whole  object  of  it  appears  to  be  to 
squeeze  the  poor,  the  weak,  and  the  enterprising  .  .  . 
and  in  every  province  it  is  merely  an  excuse  for  tyranny 
and  extortion.  Illegal  as  it  is,  when  levied  on  foreign 
goods  under  transit  pass,  it  is  curious  to  find  both  the 
British  and  German  Governments  giving  the  tax  a 
legal  status,  by  accepting  seven  Likin  CoUectorates  as 
collateral  security  for  the  last  Anglo-German  loan."' 

"  There  is  no  doubt,"  Lord  Charles  Beresford  tells 
us,  "that  the  proceedings  of  the  Russians  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Newchang  have  been  of  a  very  high-handed 
character.  They  took  their  present  settlement  without 
leave  from  anybody,  and  paid  the  natives  at  nominal 
rates  for  the  land.  I  was  shown  where  the  railway  had 
gone  through  growing  crops  without  compensating  the 
natives,  who  were  greatly  incensed,  but  were  advised  to 
keep  peaceful  by  the  authorities."* 

"  At  Chefoo,"  says  his  Lordship,  "  the  Chinese  were 

1  Brinkley,  vol.  xiL,  p.  194.  *  Ibid,^  p.  246. 

3  The  Break-up  ofCMna^  1899,  Lord  Charles  Beresford,  p.  397. 
md.,  p.  59. 


172         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

induced  to  sell  the  foreshore  to  a  Russian  Company. 
Instead  of  argruing  out  the  matter  in  a  friendly  manner 
with  the  Russian  Government,  the  British  Government 
insisted  on  the  Chinese  paying  30,cxx)  taels  (over 
;^400o),  for  granting  a  concession  which,  owing  to 
their  weakness,  they  were  powerless  to  refuse."* 

''  Some  suggestion  has  been  made  that  [at  Hankow] 
the  British  Government  should  force  the  Chinese  to 
pay  a  heavy  compensation  for  having  conceded  land  to 
the  Russians  and  French  containing  British-owned 
property.  This,"  Lord  Charles  thinks,  "is  a  cowardly 
and  unchivalrous  practice,  which  has  been  resorted  to 
lately,  under  similar  circumstances,  by  all  foreign 
countries  with  regard  to  China.  China  being  prostrate, 
one  European  Power,  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet, 
demands  concessions  which  China  has  neither  the  right 
to  give,  nor  the  power  to  refuse  Immediately,  another 
European  Power,  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  compels 
China  to  pay  heavy  compensation  for  acceding  to 
demands  which  she  had  no  power  to  resist.  No  more 
effectual  means  could  be  invented  to  undermine  the 
authority  of  the  Chinese  Government,  and  disintegrate 
the  Empire."^ 

"The  German  sphere  in  Shantung  enjoys  the  dis- 
tinction of  being  the  cradle  of  the  principal  agency  pro- 
ducing the  cataclysm  "•  of  1900,  remarks  Mr  Michie. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  one  of  the  items  of  the 
reparation  exacted  from  China  for  the  murder  of  the 
German  missionaries  was  the  permanent  degradation  of 
the  Governor  of  Shantung.  Concerning  this  man, 
Li  Ping-Heng,  opinions  seem  to  differ.  Sir  Robert  Hart 
is  quoted  as  describing  him  to  be  "a  really  able, 
popular,  and  clean-handed  official."*  H.M.  Minister  in 
Peking,  on  the  other  hand  speaks  of  him  as  "an 
ignorant  and  bigoted  anti-foreign  official  of  the  old- 

■  The  Break-up  ofCkifM^  p.  77.  >  Ibid,^  p.  157. 

'  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900^  Alexander  Michie,  vol.  ii^  p.  462. 

^  Brinkley,  vol,  xiL,  p.  191, 


CHINA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  178 

fashioned  Chinese  type,"  who  refused  to  notice  rumours 
of  child-stealing  by  foreigners,  thus  placing  missionaries 
in  much  danger.^  And  a  Chinese  writer  speaks  of  the 
murders  having  been  committed  by  "  desperate  villagers, 
goaded  on  to  their  crime  by  the  culpable  connivance,  if 
not  the  actual  encouragement,  of  the  great  hater  of 
foreigners,  Li  Ping-Heng."  *  Be  the  truth  what  it  may, 
it  seems  that  Li  Ping-Heng  retired  beyond  the  borders 
of  Shantung,  and  occupied  his  enforced  leisure  in  arrang- 
ing the  Boxer  movement ;  or,  to  give  it  its  proper  name 
the  I'Ho-Ch'uan. 

"The  Boxer  movement," says  Sir  Robert  Hart,  "is 
doubtless  the  product  of  official  inspiration,  but  it  has 
taken  hold  of  the  popular  imagination,  and  will  spread 
like  wildfire  all  over  the  length  and  breadth  of  the 
country  .  .  .  and  its  object  is  to  strengthen  China — and 
for  a  Chinese  programme."* 

As  to  its  cause.  Among  many  that  have  been 
suggested,  the  following  is  the  explanation  given  by 
Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  who  was  for  many  years 
Interpreter,  Secretary  of  Legation,  and  Acting  Minister 
of  the  United  States  in  Peking : — "  The  habit  of  repres- 
sion paves  the  way  for  grudge  and  grievance  to  be  held 
and  cherished  in  secret.  These  may  exist  and  grow  for 
years  unsuspected,  beneath  the  blank  and  expressionless 
face  of  the  Chinese,  until  some  trifle,  perhaps  quite 
unconnected  with  the  original  complaint,  brings  the 
crisis  and  lets  loose  the  storm.  The  Boxer  movement 
must  be  explained  in  this  way.  To  reach  its  source, 
one  must  go  back  sixty  years,  to  the  beginning  of 
diplomatic  intercourse  or  association  between  Chinese 
and  foreigners.  To  understand  its  power  and  momen- 
tum, the  anti-foreign  feeling  originated  then  must  be 
traced  as  it  spread  throughout  the  Empire,  and  studied  as 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1898,  p.  19. 

*  The  Chinese  Crisis  from  Within^  1901,  Wen  Ching,  p.  122. 

»  These  from  the  Land  of  Sinim^   1901,  Sir    Robert    Hart,    Bt, 
G.C.M.G.,  p.  52. 


174         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

it  was  fed  by  one  incident  after  another,  aggravated  by  a 
thousand  mutual  misunderstandings  and  genuine  causes 
of  complaint ;  deepened  by  actual  and  imaginary  attacks 
upon  the  integrity  and  independence  of  the  nation; 
broadened  and  widened  by  offensive  airs  of  patronage 
and  superior  wisdom,  and  inexcusable  acts  of  injustice 
and  wrong,  until  this  feeling  reached  the  danger  point 
at  the  close  of  the  war  with  Japan.  Then  followed 
shortly  thereafter  the  occupation  of  two  small  areas  of 
Chinese  soil  by  Great  Britain,  and  one  each  by  Russia 
and  Germany.  Still  the  repressed  anger  made  no  sign. 
But  the  hypothecation  of  native  taxes  to  secure  the  pay- 
ment of  the  indemnity  promised  to  Japan — or  as  the 
Chinese  regard  it,  the  diversion  of  their  money  to  the 
payment  of  Japan  for  an  unprovoked  and  inexcusable 
attack  upon  the  country — this  apparently  simple  and 
routine  business  act  furnished  the  friction  which  gener- 
ated the  electricity  which  let  loose  the  whirlwind.  Thus 
the  Boxer  movement !  It  represents  the  wrath  and  hate 
of  sixty  years'  growth.  It  is  the  more  violent  because 
of  those  long  years  of  repression.  And  it  receives  the 
hearty  sympathy  of  many  millions  of  Chinese  who  have 
taken  no  active  part  in  it.  For,  beyond  a  doubt,  it 
represents  to  them  a  patriotic  effort  to  save  their 
country  from  foreign  aggression  and  eventual  dis- 
memberment."^ 

The  story  of  the  Boxer  Rising  has  been  told  in 
detail  by  many  elsewhere.  One  feature  of  novelty  may 
be  noticed.  That  the  entire  diplomatic  corps  accredited 
to  a  country  should  be  besieged  in  one  of  their  Legations 
for  upwards  of  two  months  by  the  citizens  of  the  nation 
in  whose  capital  they  resided,  would  possibly  be 
regarded  as  unusual  were  the  scene  laid  in  any  other 
region  than  China ;  but,  as  we  have  seen,  many  unusual 
things  have  happened  there.  Among  the  minor  ironies 
of  the  situation  may  be  mentioned  the  presence  of  Rev. 
Dr  Martin  among  the  defenders  of  the  British  Legation 

*  Chindspast  and  future^  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  pp.  33-4. 


CHINA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  175 

compound  in  Peking.  The  venerable  gentleman  had 
professed  International  Law  at  the  Imperial  Tungwen 
College  for  over  thirty  years.  He  had  now  the  very 
remarkable  experience  of  being,  in  company  with  the 
foreign  representatives,  besieged  by  his  hopeful  pupils, 
anxious,  no  doubt,  to  demonstrate  how  thoroughly  they 
appreciated  the  niceties  of  International  Law  as  practised 
in  China. 

*'  The  facts  as  to  the  campaign  conducted  by  foreign 
forces  during  parts  of  1900  and  1901  in  Chili,"  says 
Captain  Brinkley,  "are  that  robbery,  assassinations, 
and  nameless  outrages  were  committed  by  some  of  the 
men ;  that  numbers  of  innocent  and  peaceful  non- 
combatants  were  slaughtered  or  stripped  of  every  thing 
they  possessed;  that  expeditionary  columns,  sent 
against  villages  which  had  not  been  guilty  of  any 
offence,  looted  the  residences  of  the  chief  local  officials, 
and  shot  down  many  of  the  inhabitants ;  and  that  whole 
districts  were  ruthlessly  and  needlessly  laid  waste."  ^ 

One  remarkable  evidence  of  the  intense  feeling  which 
animated  the  Boxers  must  not  be  passed  over.  Rev. 
Frederick  Brown,  who  was  attached  to  the  Intelligence 
Department  of  the  Relief  Expedition,  informs  us  that  : 
"  Looking  over  the  wall  in  the  west  of  the  city  [Peking], 
one  could  see  the  cemetery  in  which  we  had  deposited 
our  '  sacred  dust ' ;  but  now,  only  two  heaps  of  ashes 
marked  the  spot,  all  the  gravestones  having  been  broken 
up.  That  such  desecration  should  have  been  possible 
in  a  land  in  which  ancestral  worship  is  so  strong  a 
national  characteristic,  proves  the  intensity  of  the 
Chinese  hatred  for  foreigners."^ 

''Among  all  the  incidents  of  the  sanguinary  year, 
none  shocked  the  world  so  much  as  a  wholesale 
massacre  perpetrated  by  the  Russians  at  Blagovest- 
chensk   on    the    Amur."      On    isth    July    1900,    a 

^  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  p.  214. 

2  From  Tientsin  to  Peking  with  the  Allied  Forces^  1902,  Rev.  Fredk. 
Brown,  F.R.G.S.,  p.  n8. 


176         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Chinese  battery  fired  on  the  town,  killing  three 
Russians,  and  wounding  six.  The  telegraphic  instruc- 
tions received  thereafter  "were  construed  to  mean 
destruction  of  the  Chinese  population;  and  there 
ensued  a  terrible  massacre,  involving  the  lives  of 
several  thousands  of  inoffensive  men,  women,  and 
children."  1 

"  The  treaty  was  not  calculated  to  make  the  Chinese 
think  more  kindly  of  the  conquerors.  Besides  the 
payment  of  a  heavy  indemnity  [450,000,000  taels,  or 
$333> 900,000 ;  which  included  losses  suffered  by  private 
individuals],  the  Powers  exacted  apologies  to  Germany 
for  the  murder  of  her  Minister,  and  to  Japan  for  the 
assassination  of  her  Chancellor  of  Legation;  the 
erection  of  monuments  in  foreign  cemeteries ;  and  the 
making  of  new  commercial  treaties.  The  Chinese  were 
cut  to  the  quick,  by  being  told,  among  other  things, 
that  they  must  not  import  fire-arms  for  two  years ;  that 
no  official  examinations  would  be  held  for  five  years  in 
the  cities  where  foreigners  had  been  attacked  [a  penalty 
which  could  not  fail  to  be  severely  felt,  since  it  blocked 
the  career  of  all  youths  in  the  proscribed  districts] ;  that 
an  important  part  of  the  capital  would  be  added  to  the 
already  spacious  grounds  of  the  foreign  legations,  and 
that  the  whole  would  be  fortified  and  garrisoned  by 
foreign  guards ;  that  the  Taku  Forts,  which  defended 
the  entrance  to  Peking,  would  be  razed,  and  the  railway 
from  the  sea  to  the  capital  occupied  by  foreign  troops ; 
that  members  of  anti-foreign  societies  were  to  be 
executed;  that  magistrates,  even  though  they  were 
viceroys,  were  to  be  summarily  dismissed  and  disgraced, 
if  they  did  not  prevent  anti-foreign  outbreaks  and 
sternly  punish  their  ringleaders ;  that  court  ceremonies 
in  relation  to  foreign  Ministers  must  be  conformed  to 
Western  ideas;  that  the  Tsung4i  Yamin  [Foreign 
Board]  must  be  abolished,  and  a  new  Ministry  for 
Foreign  Affairs  erected — the  Wai-wu-pu,  which  must  be 

*  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  p.  213. 


CHINA:  THE  LAND  OF  PROMISE  177 

r^farded  as  the  highest  of  the  departments,  instead  of 
the  lowest.  China  s  cup  of  humiliation  was  indeed 
fuU/'^ 

Writing  in  1904,  Captain  Brinkley  summed  up  the 
Chinese  situation  in  these  words : — "  No  one  that  has 
read  the  story  of  China's  foreign  relations  as  recorded 
in  these  volumes  [/apan,  China,  etc.]  can  doubt  that 
their  cumulative  effect  has  been  to  store  up  in  her 
bosom  a  fund  of  the  deepest  resentment.  What  she  is 
now  [1904]  towards  foreigners  dl£fers  strikingly  from 
what  she  was  two  hundred  years  ago ;  and  what  she  is 
now,  that  she  has  been  made  by  systematically  harsh 
treatment,  such  as  no  other  nation  ever  suffered  at  the 
hands  of  alien  Powers.  After  sixty  years  of  intercourse 
under  treaties  of 'amity  and  commerce,*  during  which 
time  the  open  ports  and  ports  of  call  have  grown  from 
five  to  nearly  eleven  times  that  number,  and  44 
Protestant  missionary  societies,  represented  by  2700 
workers,  have  established  95  stations  in  the  18  provinces, 
the  situation  to-day  is  that  the  foreign  representatives 
are  living  in  a  fortress  in  the  capital,  garrisoned  by 
foreign  troops ;  that  their  communications  with  the  sea, 
120  miles  distant,  are  guarded  by  foreign  forces;  that 
the  whole  of  the  metropolitan  province  may  be  said  to 
be  in  foreign  military  occupation;  that  Manchuria  is 
overrun  by  Russian  troops;  that  Shanghai  has  a 
garrison  furnished  by  four  European  Powers  ;  that  the 
world  is  still  shuddering  at  the  memory  of  a  terrible 
massacre  of  Christians,  European,  American,  and 
Chinese ;  and  that  the  Chinese  people  are  cursing  foreign 
nations  because  of  the  burden  of  an  indemnity  rendered 
intolerable  by  the  exactions  of  their  own  officials.  If 
the  Chinese  themselves  are  largely  to  blame  for  this 
wretched  result — and  certainly  they  are  to  blame — that 
does  not  suggest  that  they  find  the  position  less 
irksome.  ...  Is  it  imaginable  that  a  nation  of  such 
experiences  as  China  garnered  during  the  nineteenth 

^  New  Farces  in  Old  China^  1904,  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  p.  213. 

M 


178         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

century,  should  take  foreigners  to  its  bosom  and  treat 
them  with  confidence  and  friendship  ?  "  ^ 

And  is  it  remarkable  that  the  Chinese  nation 
should  regard  their  treaty  relations  with  the  rest  of 
the  world  as  a  humiliation,  see  "no  benefit  accruinfif 
from  them,"  and  "be  looking  forward  to  the  day  when 
it  in  turn  will  be  strong  enough  to  revert  to  its  old  life 
again,  and  do  away  with  foreign  intercourse,  interference, 
and  intrusion  "  ?  ^ 

The  few  years  which  have  passed  since  those  words 
were  written  have,  without  doubt,  seen  the  inauguration 
of  great  changes  in  China.  What  the  result  of  them 
will  be  none  can  tell,  and  even  their  present  effect  there 
is  no  sufficient  evidence  to  show.  But  we  are  here 
solely  concerned  with  the  past ;  and  the  statement  has 
been  freely  made  that,  in  that  past,  the  staple  objection 
to  Christianity  was  that  it  was  foreign.  And  if  the 
Chinese  objected  to  foreigners  and  foreign  ideas, 
perhaps  they  were  not  altogether  unreasonable! 

1  Brinkley,  voL  xiL,  pp.  22I-2-3. 

'  These  from  the  Land  of  Sitdm^  1901,  Sir  Robert  Hart,  Bt,  G.C.M.G., 
p.  51. 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE  OF  THE  EUROPEAN 

In  the  previous  chapters  we  have  seen  that  the  result 
of  the  intercourse  of  China  with  the  Christian  nations 
collectively  has  been  that  owing  to  "systematically 
harsh  treatment"  she  stores  up  in  her  bosom  ''a  fund 
of  the  deepest  resentment"  towards  them.  We  have 
now  to  investigate  how  far  the  conduct  of  the  individual 
citizens  of  those  nations  has  been  calculated  to  assuage 
that  feeling,  and  to  inspire  the  Chinese  with  respect  for 
the  Christianity  which  they  profess,  by  the  principles 
of  which  they  claim  to  be  guided,  and  which  so  many 
of  their  compatriots  have  come  to  China  to  teach. 

First,  and  in  general.  *'  Under  the  guidance,  mainly 
of  the  so-called  progressive  school,  it  has  come  to  such 
a  pass  in  the  West,  that  oppression  and  the  exploiting 
of  the  other  peoples  of  the  world  has  been  reduced  to  a 
system  under  the  specious  pretext  of  spreading  civilisa- 
tion. There  has  grown  up  with  respect  to  China,  and 
Western  relations  with  her,  a  set  of  opinions  which  I 
must  try  to  describe.  These  opinions  are  summed  up 
in  the  proud  feeling  of  the  mastery  of  Western  civilisa- 
tion, and  a  blind  contempt  for  all  other  civilisations 
whatever.  From  this  there  results  the  disposition  to 
introduce  everywhere,  and  especially  by  means  of  force, 
under  the  empty  name  of  progress,  the  mental  anarchy 
and  unregulated  industrialism  which  are  becoming  more 
and  more  prevalent  in  the  West."^ 

^  General  View  of  Chinese  Citnlisatianj  1887,  M.  Pierre  Laffitte, 
p.  114. 

179 


180         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

And  now  to  come  to  particulars,  and  proceed  as  far 
as  possible  in  order  of  time.  In  1838,  one  of  the 
British  residents  at  the  Canton  Factpries  wrote : — 

"  Life  and  business  were  a  conundrum  as  insoluble 
as  the  Sphinx :  everythingr  worked  smoothly  by  acting 
in  direct  opposition  to  what  we  were  told  to  do.  .  .  . 
We  were  threatened  and  re-threatened  with  the  'direst 
penalties  *  if  we  sold  foreign  mud  (opium)  to  the  people ; 
truly,  forbearance  could  no  longer  be  exercised.  Yet 
we  continued  to  sell  the  drug  as  usual  Our  receiving 
ships  at  Lintin  must  no  longer  loiter  at  that  anchorage, 
but  forthwith  come  into  port,  or  return  to  their 
respective  countries.  .  .  .  'Cruisers  would  be  sent  to 
open  their  irresistible  broadsides'  upon  the  foreign 
ships.  Yet,  in  spite  of  these  terrors  the  ships  never 
budged.  We  were  '  forbidden  to  wander  about,  except 
three  times  a  month,  and  that  not  without  a  linguist,* 
but  we  walked  wherever  we  pleased,  and  the  linguist 
was  the  last  person  we  saw."  ^ 

A  British  witness  examined  by  a  Parliamentary 
Committee,  in  London,  some  years  later,  stated 
candidly: — "We  never  paid  any  attention  to  any  law 
in  China  that  I  recollect."^ 

In  a  memorandum  relative  to  Lord  Elgin's  mission 
of  1857,  Mr  (afterwards  Sir  R.)  Alcock  stated  that: — 
"Exemption  from  territorial  jurisdiction  was  a  great 
step  in  advance ;  but  it  brought  with  it  an  evil  progeny. 
Contempt  for  all  Chinese  authority,  and  disregard  of 
inherent  rights,  habitual  infraction  of  treaty  stipula- 
tions, license  and  violence,  wherever  the  offscum  of  the 
European  nations  found  access  and  peaceable  people 
to  plunder ;  such  were  the  first-fruits  of  this  important 
concession,  and  time  only  served  to  increase  their 
growth.  .  .  .  The  governments  of  Europe  have  yet  to 
learn  the  magnitude  of  the  danger  their  interests  are 
continually  incurring,  not  from  the  incidents  of  a  civil 

1  China^  €tc.^  1904,  Captain  R.  F.  Brinkley,  voL  x.,  pp.  241-2. 
*  Jbid^  p.  255. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      181 

war,  or  the  inherent  perversity  of  the  Chinese  race,  but 
from  the  absence  of  all  due  control  in  China  over  the 
natives  of  every  country  in  Europe  and  America,  and 
the  indifference  with  which  all  the  evils  resulting  from 
unrestrained  license  continue  to  be  regarded  even  by 
the  Treaty  Powers,"^ 

On  1 2th  April  1859,  the  same  Consul  Alcock 
informed  Sir  J.  Bowring  that,  "acts  of  violence  and 
fraud  connected  with  the  Coolie  Traffic  at  this  port 
[Canton]  have  lately  reached  such  a  pitch  of  atrocity, 
that  a  general  feeling  of  alarm  spread  through  the 
population,  accompanied  by  the  degree  of  excitement 
and  popular  indignation  which  rendered  it  no  longer 
possible  or  safe  for  any  authority  interested  in  the 
peace  to  remain  inactive.  The  intolerable  extent  and 
character  of  the  evil  has  thus  tended  to  work  its  own 
cure.  When  no  man  could  leave  his  own  house,  even 
in  public  thoroughfares,  and  in  open  day,  without  a 
danger  of  being  hustled,  under  false  pretences  of  debt 
or  delinquency,  and  carried  off  a  prisoner  in  the  hands 
of  crimps,  to  be  sold  to  the  purveyors  of  coolies  at  so 
much  a  head,  and  carried  off  to  sea,  never  again  to  be 
heard  of,  the  whole  population  of  the  city  and  adjoining 
district  were  roused  to  a  sense  of  common  peril.  That, 
under  such  circumstances,  the  people  should  attempt 
to  protect  themselves  by  administering  a  wild  justice 
of  their  own  upon  the  persons  of  any  of  the  nefarious 
gangs  of  crimps  that  fell  into  their  hands,  was  a  natural 
consequence  of  the  supineness  of  the  authorities.  And 
accordingly,  within  the  last  ten  days,  several  of  the 
kidnappers  have  been  killed  by  the  mob,  and  with  the 
vindictive  cruelty  to  which  the  Cantonese,  under  less 
provocation,  are  well  known  to  be  addicted."  * 

After  describing  the  running  down  by  a  steamer,  on 
the  Woo-Sung  River,  of  a    native   craft  laden  with 

'  InUmaiional  Policy  (Reprint  1884),  John  Henry  Bridges,  pp.  302-3. 
^  Parliamentary  Paper,  Correspondence  respecting  Emigration  from 
Canton,  1860,  p.  i. 


182  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

bricks,  and  manned  by  a  crew  of  four  Chinese  who 
were  drowned,  Professor  Raphael  Pumpelly,  who 
witnessed  the  incident,  which  took  place  about  i860, 
remarks  : — "The  instance  I  have  cited  admitted  of  no 
excuse,  as  a  few  minutes*  time  could  be  of  no  importance 
on  a  pleasure  excursion.  It  has  long  been  the  practice 
of  foreign  vessels  to  run  into  and  sink  any  junk  or  boat 
that  may  be  in  their  way,  no  matter  how  crowded  with 
passengers  these  may  be,  and  hardly  a  day  passed 
without  a  boat  being  thus  sunk  in  Chinese  waters. 
After  such  an  experience,  I  was  not  surprised  to  see 
foreigners  walking  through  crowded  streets,  and  in- 
cessantly belabouring  the  heads  of  men,  women,  and 
children,  with  heavy  walking  sticks  to  open  a  path,  nor 
at  the  constant  occurrence  of  similar  abuses,  engendered 
and  encouraged  by  the  absence  of  any  means  of  redress 
on  the  part  of  the  natives.  I  would  not  be  understood 
as  bringing  a  sweeping  charge  against  all  the  foreign 
inhabitants  of  China.  There  are  many  noble  excep- 
tions,  but  such  are  powerless  beyond  the  sphere  of 
their  own  employees."  ^ 

On  27th  April  1863,  Mr  Vice-Consul  Adkins,  of 
Chinkiang,  wrote :  —  "I  very  much  fear  that  the 
foreigners  trading  on  this  river  in  sailing  boats,  are, 
almost  without  exception,  men  without  principle  or 
character;  outlaws  in  fact,  who  have  no  regard  for 
treaties  or  regulations,  and  who  look  on  the  Chinese  as 
made  for  them  to  prey  on.  Their  drunken  and 
debauched  habits  have  made  an  impression  even  on 
the  Chinese."^ 

About  1867,  Mr  Coffin,  an  American  traveller,  was  to 
be  heard  of  at  Macao — "Macao,  where,"  says  Captain 
Brinkley  concerning  a  period  a  few  years  previous, 
"foreign  pirates  took  refuge,  and  where  barracoons 
yearly  received  twenty-five  thousand  Chinese  subjects, 
kidnapped,  or  decoyed  by  false  pretences  to  sell  them- 

1  Across  America  and  Asic^  1870,  Raphael  Pumpelly,  p.  206. 
»  "  International  Policy,"  Essay  No.  V.,  p.  294. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE   183 

selves  into  a  Kfe  of  exile  and  hardship."^  Of  Macao» 
Mr  Coffin  tells  us  : — "  If  a  person  wishes  to  lead  a  lazy, 
careless,  good-for-nothing  life,  Macao  is  the  place  for 
him.  .  .  .  Society  imposes  no  restraints  on  morality ; 
there  is  no  necessity  for  troubling  the  priest  to  pro- 
nounce the  marriage  vow ;  they  only  ask  for  absolution 
when  death  steals  on  apace."* 

In  1869,  Rev.  John  L.  Nevius  remarked  that,  at  the 
ports,  "  the  Chinese  being  every  day  brought  into  con- 
tact with  drunken  sailors,  swearing  sea-captains,  and 
unscrupulous  traders  from  the  West,  new  lessons  are 
constantly  learned  from  them  in  the  school  of  duplicity 
and  immorality."' 

The  foreign  resident  of  1870  does  not  seem  to  have 
interested  himself  in  the  work  of  Christianity.  "The 
majority  of  our  countrymen,"  said  Mr  Muirhead,  of  the 
London  Missionary  Society,  **are  as  ignorant  of  us, 
and  our  missionary  work,  as  we  are  of  them  in  their 
commercial  pursuits.  There  is  little  or  no  communica- 
tion between  us.  We  regret  it,  on  various  grounds,  and 
take  our  share  of  the  blame  connected  with  it."  *  Nor 
does  contact  with  him  appear  to  have  improved  the 
Chinese.  Of  one  of  his  journeys.  Rev.  Alexander 
Williamson  remarks  : — "I  heard  English  words  spoken 
by  passers,  who  wished  to  let  us  know  their  accomplish- 
ments— often  a  bad  sign,  as  English-speaking  Chinese 
are  generally  great  rogues,  having  to  pass  through  a 
course,  not  only  of  Chinese  wickedness,  but  of  foreign 
wickedness  in  learning  the  language."  * 

Writing  concerning  Tientsin  about  this  time.  Pro- 
fessor Parker  tells  us  that  '*  the  Chinese  ask  themselves 
why  men  who  teach  persons  how  to  be  good  are  not 

1  Brinkley,  voL  xiL,  p.  15. 

'  Our  New  Way  round  the  Worlds  1883,  Charles  Carleton  Coffin, 
p.  290. 

>  China  and  the  Chinese^  1869,  Rev.  John  L.  Nevius,  p.  277. 

«  China  and  the  Gospel^  1870,  Rev.  William  Muirhead,  p.  205. 

^  Journeys  in  North  Ckina^  1870,  Rev,  Alexander  Williamson,  B.A., 
p.  19a 


184         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

more  appreciated  and  respected  by  their  own  people ; 
how  it  is  that  Europeans  (as  they  did  then  more  than 
they  do  now)  live  openly  in  a  way  which  their  pastors 
condemn  ;  how  it  is  that  the  missionaries  and  merchants 
keep  so  much  apart»  and  speak  with  so  little  respect  of 
each  other."  ^ 

The  '*  blessings  of  civilisation  "  had  evidently  found 
their  way  to  Peking  in  187 1,  as  Mr  Thomson  "saw  two 
or  three  men  who  were  driving  a  trade  in  magic  pictures, 
and  foreign  stereoscopic  photographs,  some  not  in  the 
most  refined  style  of  art ;  and  as  for  the  peep-shows — 
well,  the  less  one  says  about  them  the  better;  they 
certainly  would  not  be  tolerated  in  any  public  thorough- 
fare in  Europe,"  *  This  was  noticed  also  in  the  following 
year  by  Baron  Richtofen,  who  remarks: — "Nothing 
has  worked  so  forcibly  in  the  interior  of  China  to  bring 
foreigners  into  general  contempt,  and  nothing  con- 
tributes so  much  to  the  insults  to  which  the  traveller  is 
occasionally  exposed,  as  the  importation  of  stereoscopic 
pictures  of  a  certain  most  vulgar  class.  .  .  .  They  are 
exhibited  by  itinerant  showmen,  who  travel  with  a 
stereoscopic  apparatus.  From  the  gates  of  Peking 
to  the  place  before  the  Temple  of  Si-ngan-fu,  and 
to  the  remotest  towns  and  villages,  chiefly  as  far 
as  the  influence  of  Tientsin  extends,  I  found  them 
everywhere."' 

In  the  same  year — 1872 — Mr  Consul  Medhurst 
expressed  his  opinion,  that  "as  for  any  moral  influence 
that  foreigners  may  exercise  by  their  mere  presence  in 
the  country,  it  may  be  regarded  as  simply  nil.  .  .  , 
Indeed,  if  anything,  the  influence  has  tended  the  other 
way,  for  I  have  found,  as  a  rule,  that  Chinese  do  not 
improve  by  being  brought  into  intimacy  with  foreigners, 
and  by  adoption,  as  a  consequence,  of  their  habits  and 

^  China  past  and  present^  1903,  Professor  E.  H.  Parker,  p.  97. 
'  Through  China  with  a  Camsra^iSgZy  John  Thomson,  F.R.G.S.,  p.  244. 
'  Letter  dy  Baron  Richtofen  to  Shanghai  Chamber  of  Commerce^  No. 
VII.,  1872,  p.  25. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      185 

ideas.  The  few  Europeanised  Chinese  that  are  to  be 
met  with  are,  with  very  rare  exceptions,  most  insuffer- 
able creatures."^ 

Commenting  on  "the  wide  breach  which  separates 
the  missionaries  from  the  bulk  of  the  foreign  community," 
about  1875,  Hon.  H.  N.  Shore  thinks  "we  cannot 
reasonably  expect  the  millions  of  China,  to  accept  our 
much  vaunted  tokens  of  superiority;  our  civilisation, 
our  arts  and  sciences,  and  last  but  not  least  Christianity, 
when  they  find  us  divided  among  ourselves  as  to  their 
relative  advantages,  and  that  we  do  not  practise  our 
own  teaching.  When  they  find  many,  not  only  setting 
Christianity  at  nought,  but  ridiculing  and  vilifying  its 
professors,  and  persistently  obstructing  their  efforts 
to  spread  its  doctrines  abroad,  the  Chinese  are  scarcely 
likely  to  form  a  very  high  opinion  of  the  nations  these 
people  represent ;  and  instead  of  welcoming  the  efforts 
which  are  being  made  on  their  behalf,  they  are  more 
likely  to  look  with  suspicion  on  those  who  are  working 
for  their  good,  and  without  waiting  to  detect  the 
impostors  from  the  real  benefactors,  to  repudiate  the 
advances  of  all."* 

"In  r^^d  to  morality  and  religion,  the  Chinese 
nation  has  not  yet  discovered  our  superiority.  .  .  .  The 
foreign  name  is  deservedly  associated  with  the  opium 
trade  .  .  -  the  coolie  traffic  .  .  .  the  whole  bloody  train 
of  war,  unjustified  by  any  adequate  cause,  including 
spoliation  and  dire  vengeance  on  the  innocent,  has  come 
in  swift  ships  from  West  to  East.  Under  the  auspices 
of  lawful  commerce,  pictures  are  imported  from  Europe, 
among  which  are  found  large  quantities  of  stereoscopic 
views  of  the  vilest  and  most  obscene  character,  display- 
ing before  the  eye  vices  and  crimes  of  our  race  which 
we  would  blush  to  name.  The  author  himself  [Rev.  Dr 
Wheeler]  has  more  than  once  been  filled  with  hot  indig- 

1  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathay^  1872,  W.  H.  Medharst,  p.  176. 
<   The  Flight  of  the  ^^  Lapwing^  1881,  Hon.  Henry  Noel  Shore, 
R.N.y  p.  441. 


186         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

nation  at  seeing  these  views  publicly  exhibited  on  the 
streets  of  Peking.  They  are  scattered  far  and  wide 
throughout  the  country ;  and  it  is  believed  that  in  many 
of  the  interior  cities,  Chinamen  might  be  found  who  are 
making  large  incomes  by  showing  them  to  hundreds  of 
natives  daily.  "^ 

"Foreign  merchants  and  traders  in  China,"  con- 
tinues Dr  Wheeler,  who  wrote  in  1881,  "with  frequent 
and  most  honourable  exceptions,  are  not  in  sympathy 
with  the  work  of  Christian  missions.  .  .  .  The 
missionary  .  .  .  has  no  time  to  labour  for  their  spiritual 
well-being,  but  cannot  always  repress  his  indignation. 
.  .  .  He  denounces  the  cupidity  and  vices  of  his  own 
countrymen,  who,  in  turn,  denounce  him ;  and  unhappily, 
innocent  parties  are  sometimes  involved.  .  .  .  This 
breach  is  constantly  widening,  the  effect  being  to 
multiply  a  peculiar  class  of  difficulty  always  to  be 
accounted  formidable.*'* 

In  1885,  we  find  Major  KnoUys  recording  his 
impressions  of  the  Protestant  Cathedral  at  Shanghai. 
"The  only  fault  I  can  find  with  the  building  is  that 
it  is  of  a  size  and  internal  splendour  absurdly  in  excess 
of  the  requirements  of  the  English  Protestant  residents, 
and  the  money  thus  spent  might  have  been  far  more 
usefully  employed  in  improving  the  local  clerical  admin- 
istration .  .  .  the  tiny  congregation  looks  even  more 
tiny  in  contrast  with  the  dreary  array  of  empty  seats. 
...  In  addition  to  the  Cathedral  there  is  a  Wesleyan 
place  of  worship,  the  frequenters  whereof  set  a  con- 
spicuous example  of  humble  sincerity,  while  their 
affiliated  temperance  society  effects  immense  good 
amongst  those  who  can  abstain  but  cannot  be 
moderate."* 

We  may  now  glance  at  Hong-Kong.  In  1859,  we 
learn  from  Mr  Douglas,  that  "  the  effect  on  the  public 

»  The  Foreigner  in  China^  1881,  Rev.  L.  N.  Wheeler,  D.D.,  p.  188. 

*  Ibid,^  pp.  247-8. 

*  English  Life  in  China^  1885,  Major  Henry  Knollys,  R.A.,  p.  95. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      187 

morals  of  our  own  countrymen  is  terribly  injurious ;  the 
Colonial  Government  of  Hong-Kong,  after  first  licen- 
sing opium  shops,  soon  proceeded  to  license  houses  for 
nameless  debauchery,  and  now  actually  derives  an 
income  from  that  polluted  source — ^a  very  logical  and 
consistent  conclusion  to  such  premises  as  opium  traffic 
and  unlicensed  opium  dens.  ...  A  Chinaman  lately 
said  to  a  missionary : — '  Only  persuade  the  foreigners 
to  cease  bringing  opium,  and  I  will  set  you  yourself  up 
as  my  God,  and  worship  none  beside  you.' "  ^ 

In  1884,  Dr  Fortescue  Fox  gave  his  impressions  of 
Hong-Kong,  where,  he  says,  there  are,  of  course, 
''Englishmen  of  earnestness  and  ability,  who  are 
exerting  themselves  by  writing  and  speech  to  stimulate 
intellectual  life,  raise  the  tone  of  the  colony  and  establish 
worthier  relations  with  the  Chinese.  But,  with  these 
honourable  exceptions,  and  speaking  of  the  average 
Englishman,  the  visitor  is  painfully  impressed  by  a 
certain  mental  and  bodily  sloth,  and  narrow  intolerant 
ideas,  in  which  an  ungenerous  contempt  of  the  Chinaman 
is  sadly  conspicuous.  .  .  .  Will  Hong-Kong  become  a 
second  Macao?  The  standard  of  life  and  thought  of 
some  of  these  places  [the  English  Settlements  in  the  Far 
East]  seems  to  the  visitor  most  unsatisfactory.  Great 
numbers  are  mere  pleasure  hunters ;  a  few,  who  prefer 
dollars  to  pleasure,  are  set  down  as  misers.  Beyond 
that,  what  is  there  ?  a  good  Bishop,  a  large  Cathedral, 
and  a  small  congregation.  .  .  .  To-day  Hong-Kong  is 
wealthy,  populous,  and  influential :  let  her  also  be  sober, 
humane,  and  just,  for  close  at  hand  is  Macao ! "  * 

To  this  "large  Cathedral"  went  Major  Knollys,  to 
whom  it  appeared  that,  "  inside  and  outside,  the  building 
is  all  that  could  be  reasonably  wished,  architecturally 
handsome,  fitted  up  with  good  taste,  comfortable,  large 
and   roomy;   almost   sadly   roomy,    since   the   space 

^  Glimpses  of  Mission  Work  in  China^  i860,  section  by  C.  Douglas, 
p.  66. 

'  Observations  in  China^  1884,  Fortescue  Fox,  M.B.(Lond.),  pp.  53-5. 


188         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

available  for  about  two  thousand  is  only  occupied  by  a 
scanty  congrregation  of  four  or  five  hundred.  The 
majority  of  our  countrymen  seem  to  have  left  their 
religion  behind  them  in  England.  In  every  point  of 
view,  practical  and  theoretical^  it  is  but  coldly  regarded 
here "^ 

In  1 88s,  we  find  Mr  Colquhoun  complaining  that 
*'the  public  possesses  no  library  worthy  of  the  name, 
while  the  condition  of  its  Public  Library,  which  has  a 
nucleus  of  old  and  valuable  works,  reflects  little  credit 
on  so  wealthy  and  enterprising  a  community.  The 
merchants  are  too  busy  to  attend  to  such  matters  I  am 
told ;  but  they  subscribe  liberally  whenever  exploration 
or  any  public  object  is  in  question.  The  Government 
has  neither  maps  nor  library  of  any  value.  If  com- 
mercial or  political  information,  regarding  the  countries 
with  which  the  future  of  the  place  is  bound  up,  be 
wanted  at  any  time,  it  must  actually  be  got  from 
London.  The  only  good  library  on  the  China  coast 
is  found  at  Shanghai  .  .  •  maintained  by  the  money 
and  enterprise  of  the  commercial  community.  Even 
Foochow  and  Canton  possess  better  means  of  study  or 
reference  than  Hong-Kong."* 

Rev.  John  A.  Turner,  who  was  in  Hong-Kong 
about  the  end  of  1886,  found  that  **a  great  improve- 
ment has  taken  place  of  late  years,  though  even  now  a 
higher  tone  might  be  given  to  society  with  great  advan- 
tage .  .  .  the  number  of  virtuous  families  is  increasing, 
and  the  Churches  do  their  utmost  to  stem  the  tide  of 
evil."' 

The  result  of  these  praiseworthy  efforts  does  not 
seem  to  have  been  satisfactory  to  Rev.  Dr  Mutchmore, 
who,  writing  five  years  later,  informs  us  that  "every 

^  English  Life  in  China^  1885,  Major  Henry  KnoUys,  R.A.,  p.  4a 
>  English  Policy  in  the  Far  Easty  1885,  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun, 

F.R.G.S.,  pp.  8-9.  ' 

'  Kwang'Tung;  or.  Five  years  in  South  Chinoy  1895,  John  A.  Turner, 

p.  105. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      189 

conceivable  form  of  sin  lives  and  thrives.  .  .  .  Prostitu- 
tion is  simply  appallingf."  * 

Mr  Norman  described  Hong-Kong  in  1895  as  "an 
Arcadia  for  criminals  of  the  neighbouring  province, 
who  first  plan  their  outrages  there,  and  then  take 
refuge  in  it  when  their  coup  has  been  effected.  If  the 
hue  and  cry  after  them  becomes  too  hot,  they  commit 
some  small  offence  against  the  laws  of  the  Colony,  with 
a  view  of  getting  committed  to  prison  for  a  few  months, 
under  which  circumstances  they  are  absolutely  safe 
against  the  pursuit  of  detectives  from  their  own 
country."  * 

In  the  same  year,  the  Inspector  of  Schools,  com- 
menting on  a  scheme  to  provide  non-compulsory 
religious  education  in  the  Chinese  schools  of  the 
Island,  remarks:  ''That  Sir  J.  Davis  was  to  some 
extent  a  religious  visionary,  may  be  inferred  from  a 
despatch  (13th  March  1847)  in  which  he  commended 
his  scheme  to  the  Colonial  Office  by  saying  that,  *  If 
these  schools  were  eventually  placed  in  charge  of  native 
Christian  teachers,  bred  up  by  the  Protestant  mission- 
aries, it  would  afford  the  most  rational  prospect  of 
converting  the  native  population  of  the  island.'  Sancta 
simplicitas  /  "  •  Of  the  schools  mentioned,  the  Inspector 
tells  us  that,  though  they  failed  to  produce  a  single 
native  minister,  or  any  official  interpreter,  many  of  the 
best  educated  native  residents  received  their  training 
therein.  On  the  other  hand  some  of  the  scholars 
•'gained,  at  different  times,  an  unenviable  notoriety  in 
Police  Court  cases.  Hence  the  public  drew  the 
inference  that  in  the  case  of  Chinese  youths,  an 
English  education,  even  when  conducted  on  a  religious 
basis,  fails  to  effect  any  moral  reform,  and  rather  tends 

^  Moghul^  Mongoly  Mikado^  and  Missianary^  iSqi,  Samuel  A 
Matchmore,  D.D.,  voL  ii.,  pp.  79-Sa 

*  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  East^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  p.  27. 

'  Europe  in  China^  1895,  £•  J-  ^itel,  Ph.D.  (Inspector  of  Schools, 
Hong-KongX  p.  247. 


190         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

to  draw  out  the  vicious  elements  inherent  in  the  Chinese 
character.  ...  As  the  mercantile  public  became  severe 
critics  of  the  labours  of  the  missionaries,  the  latter  came 
to  look  upon  Hong-Kong  as  a  'stumbling-block 
to  the  progress  of  Christianity  and  civilisation  in 
China.' "^ 

On  the  last  day  of  1898,  Lord  Charles  Beresford 
visited  an  opium  farm  in  Hong-Kong,  where  he  was 
shown  "  the  manner  in  which  the  opium  was  prepared. 
The  present  opium  farmer  has  a  contract  with  the 
Government  for  three  years  at  a  rent  of  ;^3ioo  a  month. 
He  sells  an  average  of  eight  to  ten  tins  of  opium  a  day. 
The  tins  are  about  9  ins.  by  6  ins.,  and  contain  about 
£30  worth  of  opium,  thus  making  ;^7200  to  ;^9000  a 
month.  The  trade  would  appear  to  be  a  very  lucrative 
one.  The  opium  farmer  is  known  to  be  the  largest 
smuggler  of  opium  into  the  country.  If  he  did  not 
smuggle  he  could  not  afford  to  pay  the  large  rent 
demanded  by  the  Government.  Thus,  indirectly,  the 
Hong-Kong  Government  derives  a  revenue  by  foster- 
ing an  illegitimate  trade  with  a  neighbouring  and 
friendly  power,  which  cannot  be  said  to  redound  to 
the  credit  of  the  British  Government."* 

In  1899,  we  find  M,  Edmund  Plauchut  enlarging 
on  the  attractions  of  Hong-Kong,  as  he  had  found 
them  at  the  time  of  his  visit.  "  In  spite  of  its  popularity 
and  importance,  however,  the  town  is  anything  but  a 
pleasant  place  to  stop  in,  and  the  foreign  visitor  soon 
gets  tired  of  being  jostled  about  by  busy  coolies  and 
tipsy  sailors.  The  chief  delight  of  the  latter  is  to  get 
drunk  in  the  brandy-stores  of  Victoria  Street,  and  then 
to  dance,  not,  strange  to  say,  with  women,  but  without 
partners,  to  the  music  of  a  violin  and  a  big  drum.  In 
the  evening,  the  floating  and  resident  population  alike 
resort  in  crowds  to  the  opium-dens  and  houses  of  ill- 
fame  in  the  upper  portions  of  the  town.    No  one  seems 

^  Europe  in  China^  pp.  280-1. 

>  The  Break-tip  of  CMna^  1899,  Lord  Charles  Beresford,  pp.  211-12. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      191 

to  feel  any  shame  at  being:  seen  to  enter  these  places, 
the  windows  of  which  are  wide  open,  so  that  all  can 
look  into  the  brightly  illuminated  rooms,  whence 
proceeds  the  sound  of  oaths  in  all  manner  of  languasfes, 
whilst  the  loud  clash  of  gongs  mingles  with  the  muffled 
songs  of  the  Chinese  beauties,  and  every  now  and  then 
a  shower  of  crackers  is  flung  into  the  street  below, 
bursting  into  zig-zags  of  fire  on  the  heads  of  the  startled 
passers-by."* 

"Not  unjustly,"  observes  M.  Plauchut,  "have  many 
medical  men  called  attention  to  the  indulgence  in  wine 
and  brandy  of  the  European  residents  in  China, 
especially  in  Hong-Kong,  and  suggested  that  the 
missionaries  should  begin  their  reforms  at  home,  and 
before  inveighing  against  Chinese  vices,  they  should 
endeavour  to  win  converts  to  sobriety  amongst  their 
own  fellow-countrymen."* 

And  we  may  conclude  at  Hong-Kong  with  Sir 
Robert  Hart's  opinion  in  1901.  "Hong-Kong  has 
long  been  a  centre  of  opium  smuggling  and  trade  in 
arms  and  contraband  salt,  and  round  this  lawlessness 
flock  all  the  adventurers  of  the  south."  * 

To  return  to  the  mainland  of  China.  At  the  English 
Church  on  the  Shamin,  at  Canton,  we  should  have  found 
the  foreign  resident  in  the  "eighties"  without  a  pastor 
at  all  "  Formerly  a  clergyman  was  resident  here,  but 
of  late  years  missionaries  of  various  societies  have  given 
one  or  two  Sundays  each  to  keep  up  the  services."* 
One  of  the  resident  clergy  referred  to  was  thus  appreci- 
ated by  Baron  de  Hiibner,  a  Catholic  nobleman,  in 
1 87 1.  Ven.  Archdeacon  Gray  has  "exercised  his 
ministry  here  for  nineteen  years.  The  most  busy  time 
of  his  life  coincides  with  the  occupation  of  Canton  by 

^  China  and  the  Chinese^  1899,  Edmund  Plauchut  (translated  and 
edited  by  Mrs  Arthur  BcU),  p.  10.  *  IbiiL^  pp.  179-80. 

'  These  from  the  Land  of  Simm^  1901,  Sir  Robert  Hart,  Bt., 
G.C.M.G.,  p.  128. 

*  Kwang-Tung;  or^  Five  Years  in  South  China^  1895,  John  A. 
Turner,  p.  39. 


192         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  English,  when  war  and  sickness,  even  more  than 
Chinese  balls,  cut  short  so  many  young  lives.  It  was 
then  that  the  Cantonese  became  accustomed  to  see  this 
good  man  in  his  cylindrical  hat,  white  cravat,  and  long 
black  great  coat,  rushing  from  hospital  to  hospital, 
and  from  port  to  port,  tending  the  sick,  consoling  the 
dying,  and  burying  the  dead.  It  was  from  that 
moment  that  dates  the  reverend  gentleman's  great 
popularity."^ 

On  3rd  September  1888,  a  Protestant  missionary 
— Rev.  A.  Williamson,  LL.D. — gave  his  testimony 
in  a  paper  on  "Missionary  Organisation  in  China," 
read  at  Chefoo.  ''The  startling,  though  it  is  not 
the  most  serious,  aspect  of  the  question,  is  that  not 
only  is  heathenism  extending,  but  immorality  is 
increasing  in  all  directions.  .  .  .  Those  of  us  who 
have  lived  long  in  China  see  the  evil  spreading  before 
our  eyes,  especially  in  and  around  our  great  emporiums, 
with  an  ever-widening  area  every  year.  The  Chinese 
are  learning  evil  faster  than  they  are  learning  good. 
They  are  adding  foreign  vices  to  their  own,  aping 
foreign  free-living  and  habits,  often  in  the  most  power- 
ful manner;  and  the  fact  is,  that  in  and  around  our 
centres  of  commerce,  they  are  less  honest,  less  moral, 
and  less  susceptible  to  the  preaching  of  Divine  Truth 
than  formerly  by  a  long  way.  .  .  .  Yes,  contact  with 
Western  civilisation  is  proving  no  unmixed  blessing  to 
China.  .  •  .  Further,  we  are  not  rising  in  the  respect  or 
esteem  of  the  Chinese  as  we  expected.  A  few  years  ago 
there  was  a  general  sense  of  satisfaction  among  us  at  the 
attitude  shown  to  us  by  many,  both  officials,  wealthy 
civilians,  and  literary  men.  Now,  a  change  is  perceptible 
in  all  directions.  They  respect  us  less  than  they  used  to 
do,  receive  our  visits  less  readily.  We  find  it  more 
difficult  to  rent  or  buy  houses,  and  so  on."* 

^  A  Ramble  round  the  Worlds  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hubner  (translated 
by  Lady  HerbertX  voL  ii.,  p.  382. 

*  The  Chinese  Recorder  and  Missionary  Jaumaly  January  1889,  pp.21-3. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      198 

At  the  Shangrhai  Conference  of  1890,  in  discussing 
the  "  Relation  of  Missions  to  Foreign  Residents,"  Ven, 
Archdeacon  Moule  alluded  to  "the  dismal  truth  which 
requires  no  evidence ;  it  is  so  apparent  that  very  many 
with  the  Christian  name  are  living  exactly  as  they  ought 
not  to  live.  .  .  /'^ 

At  the  same  Conference,  Rev.  Dr  Mateer  gave  it  as 
his  opinion  that  the  Chinese  who  is  educated  in  English 
''naturally  considers  it  his  chief  stock  in  trade,  and 
expects  to  live  by  it.  The  result  is  that  by  natural 
necessity  he  is  attracted  to  a  foreign  port,  and  finds 
his  place  in  connection  with  foreign  trade,  or  in  yam^ns 
having  to  do  with  foreign  affairs.  In  such  positions  his 
influence  for  good  on  his  own  people  generally  counts 
for  but  little.  Moreover,  as  experience  shows,  the 
wreck  of  his  moral  character  is  the  common  result, 
and  his  life  counts  as  so  much  against  instead  of  for 
the  truth.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  is  educated  in  his 
own  language,  he  remains  amongst  his  own  people. 
His  moral  character  is  conserved."* 

And  Rev.  D.  Z.  Sheffield  laid  down  that "  Christianity 
is  needed  in  the  incoming  education  to  protect  China 
against  the  evils  of  Western  civilisation.  Already  the 
use  of  opium  is  filling  China  with  wretchedness  and 
misery.  .  .  .  The  evils  of  intemperance  are  being 
aggravated  by  contact  with  Western  civilisation,  and 
social  impurity  becomes  more  public  and  unblushing. 
Western  civilisation  multiplies  luxuries,  that  both 
stimulate  and  minister  to  a  refined  selfishness.  A 
wider  scope  is  given  to  the  pursuit  of  riches,  pleasure, 
and  all  the  objects  of  self-gratification.  Thus  Western 
civilisation,  divorced  from  Christianity,  is  already  adding 
new  evils  to  China,  Japan,  and  India ;  to  the  old  evils 
that  inhere  in  these  heathen  civilisations ;  and  the  dark 
moral  record  in  history  only  opens  into  a  darker  moral 
outlook  in  the  future."* 

'  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  24. 
*  Ibid^  p.  463.  '  IbicLy  pp.  473-4. 

N 


194         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  a  letter  to  the  North  China  Daily  News  of  21st 
July  1891,  one  who  signed  himself  "A  Chinese,"  saw, 
in  the  support  of  missionaries  by  foreign  governments, 
an  insult  to  the  Chinese  people.  This,  because  the 
high  Chinese  officials,  who  now  employ  technical  and 
educated  foreigners,  see  that  these  latter  do  not  believe 
in  what  the  missionaries  say:  and  "while  the  Consuls 
are  seen  ordering  up  gunboats  for  the  support  of  the 
mission  cause,  the  very  coolies  in  their  consulates  know 
that  the  missionaries,  as  a  body,  are  not  looked  up 
to  by  the  better  class  of  foreigners  as  their  moral 
teachers."  ^ 

"A  Chinese"  is  understood  to  be  Kaw  Hong-Beng 
[.•^Ku  Hung-Ming],  M.A.  of  Edinburgh,  and  lately 
Secretary  to  H.  E.  the  Viceroy  of  Hunan  and  Hupeh, 
who,  "though  trained," says  Dr  Morrison,  "in  the  most 
pious  and  earnest  Community  in  the  United  Kingdom 
...  is  openly  hostile  to  the  introduction  of  Christianity 
into  China."  *  If  edification  cannot  be  aroused  by  the 
spectacle  of  the  European  at  home,  it  may  well  be  that 
the  case  for  his  influence  and  example  in  China  is 
hopeless. 

"From  whatever  cause,"  wrote  Lord  Curzon,  in 
1894,  "the  missionaries,  as  a  class,  are  rarely  popular 
with  their  own  countrymen.  Indeed,  one  of  the  most 
striking  phenomena  of  English-speaking  society  in  the 
countries  to  which  I  have  referred,  is  the  absolute 
severance  of  its  two  main  component  items,  the 
missionaries  and  the  merchants,  neither  of  whom 
think  or  speak  over  favourably  of  the  other,  and  who 
are  rarely  seen  at  each  other's  table.  The  missionary 
is  offended  at  what  he  regards  as  the  mere  selfish  quest 
of  lucre ;  the  merchant  sneers  at  work  which  is  apt  to 
parade  a  very  sanctimonious  expression,  and  sometimes 

^  The  Anti-Foreign  Riots  in  China  in  1891,  1892  {North  China  Herald 
Office),  p.  109. 

■  An  Australian  in  China^  1895,  G.  E.  Morrison,  M.B.,  CM.,  F.R,G.S., 
pp.  4-5. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      195 

results  in  nothing  at  all  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  is  futile  to  apportion  the  blame  between  the  two 
parties,  or  to  hope  that  any  argument  can  effect  a 
reconciliation.  There  are,  of  course,  many  cases  where 
no  such  divergrence  exists,  and  where  a  harmony  of 
interest  and  intercourse  prevails  ;  but  I  have  not  found 
them  sufficiently  numerous  to  invalidate  the  general 
proposition."  ^ 

In  189s,  Mr  Norman  could  say: — "As  for  any 
moral  influence  that  foreigners  may  exercise  by  their 
presence  in  the  country,  it  may  be  r^arded  as  absol- 
utely nU.  I  believe  this  to  be  absolutely  true."  It  may 
be  remembered  that,  more  than  twenty  years  before, 
Mr  Consul  Medhurst  had  expressed  the  same  opinion 
in  the  same  words.  "The  reader  may  naturally  be 
inclined  to  reply,"  continues  Mr  Norman,  "  that  in  the 
face  of  so  many  years  of  devoted  missionary  work,  and 
the  large  sums  of  money  that  are  yearly  subscribed  in 
England  to  support  this,  such  a  statement  is  incredible. 
My  answer  is  that  from  the  missionaries  themselves 
come  some  of  the  strongest  testimonies  in  support  of 
the  assertion  of  declining  foreign  influence.  I  once 
asked  a  Roman  Catholic  priest  whom  I  met  in  China, 
and  of  whose  character  and  knowledge  I  formed  the 
highest  opinion,  if  he  believed  that  the  result  of 
missionary  enterprise  would  result,  even  in  the  fulness 
of  time,  in  anything  that  could  be  remotely  described 
as  the  Christianising  of  China.  'Jamais  I '  he  replied, 
emphatically.  'Then,'  said  I,  *why  are  you  here?'  'I 
am  here,'  he  replied,  'simply  in  obedience  to  the 
command  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  all  peoples.  Like 
the  soldiers  in  the  ranks,  I  obey  the  orders  of  my 
commander,  without  understanding  in  the  least  what 
good  is  to  come  of  them.'  Yet  no  missionary  who 
has  been  in  China  for  centuries  has  achieved  such 
extraordinary  victories,  or  has  a  position  of  so  much 
power  as  this  man." 

1  Problems  of  the  FarEast^  1894,  Hon.  George  N.  Curzon,  M.P.,  p.  425. 


196         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Having  quoted  from  the  paper  read  at  Chefoo  by 
Dr  Williamson,  already  referred  to,  Mr  Norman 
proceeds  to  cite  a  "  Review  of  the  Volume  of  Customs 
Reports  for  last  year,"  in  which  **the  British  Minister 
to  China  forwards,  and  therefore  approves,  a  report 
written  by  one  of  his  subordinates,  which  concludes 
with  these  striking  words : — '  I  hardly  venture  to  make 
any  comments  of  my  own  upon  the  pages  I  have 
reviewed ;  but  in  one  word,  I  consider  that  the  con- 
clusion of  the  whole  matter  inevitably  is  that  the  trade 
conducted  by  foreigners  in  China  has  made  but  little 
progress  during  the  ten  years  1882-1891 ;  that  it  does 
not  promise  any  immediate  or  considerable  advance; 
and  that  foreign  interests  and  influence  therein  have 
decreased  and  deteriorated  to  an  appreciable  extent.' "  ^ 

In  1897,  Mr  Macgowan  informs  us  concerning  the 
English  Church  at  Amoy,  which,  it  appears,  is  "an 
unpretentious,  but  an  exceedingly  useful  and  comfort- 
able, place  of  worship.  The  architect  who  designed  it 
had  evidently  the  comfort  both  of  the  preacher  and 
of  the  congregation  in  view,  rather  than  an  archi- 
tectural style,  that  might  have  been  more  rigidly 
ecclesiastical,  but  that  would  not  have  conduced  to 
the  pleasure  of  religious  worship.  It  is  light  and  airy 
with  large  windows  guarded  by  Venetians  on  the 
outside.  The  pews  consist  of  five  sittings,  each  one 
in  the  form  of  an  arm-chair,  in  which  the  worshipper 
can  sit  with  the  greatest  comfort ;  for  he  is  not  only 
protected  against  any  crowding  by  his  neighbours,  but 
he  is  also  secured  a  position  of  perfect  ease,  for  the 
backs  of  these  chairs  have  been  made  at  the  precise 
angle  that  secures  absolute  rest  to  the  person  who 
occupies  them.  The  services  are  conducted  by  resident 
missionaries,  one  Sunday  the  Episcopal  service  being 
used,  and  the  next  the  Nonconformist,  so  as  to  meet 
the  wishes  of  the  different  sections  of  the  Community."  * 

^  Peoples  and  Politics  0/ the  FarEast^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  pp.  280-1-2. 
^  Pictures  of  Southern  China^  1897,  Rev.  J.  Macgowan,  p.  151. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      197 

In  1900,  Mr  Will  remarks  that  *'it  is  noticeable  that 
the  moral  degradation,  of  which  hasty  foreign  observers 
have  written  so  much,  is  chiefly  to  be  found  in  the  coast 
cities  where  the  natives  come  into  contact  with 
Europeans  and  Americans."* 

In  the  same  year,  Miss  Scidmore,  who  made  ''seven 
visits  to  China  in  the  last  fifteen  years,"  as  she  tells  us, 
wrote  : — "  Where  fashion  drives,  there  '  Chineses  drive,' 
and  the  Bubbling  Well  Road,  once  the  resort  of  the 
high  cart  and  the  closed  brougham  of  British  good  form 
and  high  life,  now  rattles  with  anything  that  can  go  on 
wheels,  and  be  crowded  with  gay  and  gilded  'young 
China,'  callow  sinners  and  mature  scoundrels  in  splendid 
satins,  all  smoking  large  cigars,  who  have  adopted  and 
adapted  all  Western  vices  and  modes  of  dissipation. 
They  have  their  theatres  and  restaurants  and  gambling 
houses,  of  course,  and  in  fine  travesty  of  the  foreign 
community,  their  'country-clubs'  and  tea-gardens, 
where  young  China  enjoys  cycloramas,  spectacles,  and 
distractions,  varied  with  flower  shows  very  well  worth 
seeing.  This  much  of  Western  life  they  have  approached 
to,  but  nothing  so  discourages  one  for  the  future  of 
China  and  the  chances  of  progress  as  this  daily  display 
of  young  China  in  its  hours  of  ease.  Combining  all  of 
domestic  and  imported  depravity,  these  young  Chinese 
of  the  merchant  and  comprador  class,  longest  in  contact 
with  foreign  ways,  well  entitle  Shanghai  to  its  repute  in 
their  world  as  the  fastest  and  wickedest  place  in 
China."' 

"The  stranger,"  says  Miss  Scidmore,  elsewhere, 
"of  course  wishes  to  visit  the  old  city  of  Shanghai,  but 
he  should  repress  his  enthusiasm  in  the  presence  of  the 
foreign  resident,  and  never,  under  any  circumstances, 
no  matter  what  powerful  letters  he  may  present,  what 
ties  of  kinship  or  bonds  of  old  friendship  he  may  claim, 

^  IVarld'Crisu  in  China,  1900^  AUen  S.  Will,  p.  166. 
'  China,  the  Long-lived  Empire,  1900^   Eliza   Ruhama   Scidmore, 
pp.  286-7. 


198  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

expect  the  foreign  resident  to  accompany  him  there. 
Nor  any  more  should  he  talk  about  the  excursion  in 
polite  Shanghai  circles  afterwards.  In  all  boredom 
nothing  so  bores  the  resident  as  the  globe-trotter's  tales 
of  his  slumming  in  the  native  city.  The  resident  has 
usually  never  been  there,  or  he  may  apologetically 
explain  that  he  did  go  there  once,  years  ago,  when  he 
first  came,  when  he  was  a  'griffin,'  otherwise  a  'tender- 
foot,'in  the  Far  East."  ^ 

In  the  year  1900  occurred  the  si^e  of  the  Foreign 
Legations  in  Peking.  Of  this  there  is  only  one  matter 
which  calls  for  notice  here.  We  learn  from  Rev. 
F.  Brown,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Mission,  Peking, 
who  was  attached  to  the  Intelligence  Department  of  the 
Allied  Forces: — "On  their  arrival  at  the  Legations, 
there  was  some  hesitation  about  finding  accommodation 
for  the  native  Christian  refugees,  and  Professor  James 
of  the  Imperial  University  lost  his  life  that  day,  while 
seeking  for  quarters  for  the  poor  helpless  converts,  who 
had  accepted  Christianity  for  their  faith,  and  were  now 
in  danger  of  finding  'no  room  in  the  inn,'  yet  this  is 
what  happened  to  their  Lord  and  Master.  To  Dr 
Morrison,  the  Times  correspondent,  belongs  not  a  little 
of  the  credit  of  saving  the  native  Christians  from  being 
turned  loose  into  the  Boxer  lines  to  be  murdered.  A 
place  was  found  for  them  at  last ;  and  it  is  well  that  this 
was  so,  for  all  the  barricades  here,  as  well  as  in  Tientsin, 
were  built  by  the  native  Christians,  under  the  supervision 
of  the  missionaries."  * 

Rev.  Roland  Allen  further  informs  us  that  by  rescu- 
ing the  Catholic  converts  and  bringing  them  in,  Dr 
Morrison  opened  the  way  for  Protestant  missionaries 
to  insist  on  their  right  to  bring  in  their  Christians, 
which  had  "up  to  this  date  been  steadily  refused  by  the 
Foreign  Ministers,  and  was  never  openly  admitted  by 

1  Ckina^  the  Lang-lived  Empire^  pp.  290-1. 

^  From  Tientsin  to  Peking  with  the  Allied  Forces^  1902,  Rev. 
Fre4erick  Brown,  F.R.G.S.,  pp.  52-3. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      199 

them,  until  the  event  proved  that  we  could  not  possibly 
have  been  saved  without  the  Christians."*  "When 
the  question  had  come  up  in  regard  to  them,  some  days 
previously,"  says  Rev.  Dr  Martin,  "in  a  council  of 
Ministers,  some  members  of  the  diplomatic  corps 
objected  to  receiving  so  large  a  body  of  natives,  on 
account  of  the  danger  of  running  short  of  provisions. 
The  missionaries,  however,  had  resolved  to  live  or  die 
with  their  converts,  and  their  noble  devotion  was  fully 
appreciated  by  the  American  and  British  Ministers,  as 
wdl  as  by  the  greater  part  of  the  diplomatic  body."* 
And  we  gather  from  the  Shanghai  Mercury,  that  "the 
men  among  the  refugees  proved  of  incalculable  service 
in  the  manual  work  and  the  work  of  fortifying.  Though 
many  of  the  Europeans  cared  nothing  about  saving  the 
converts,  they  were  quick  enough  to  accept  the  indispens- 
able help  which  the  Chinese  rendered."* 

Concerning  the  expedition  for  the  relief  of  the 
Legations,  we  are  informed  by  Mr  Lynch,  who  accom- 
panied it,  "there  are  things  that  I  must  not  write,  and 
that  may  not  be  printed  in  England,  which  would  seem  to 
show  that  this  Western  civilisation  of  ours  is  merely  a 
veneer  over  savagery.  The  actual  truth  has  never  been 
written  about  any  war,  and  this  will  be  no  exception."* 
The  events  are  summed  up  for  us  by  the  Inspector- 
General  of  Chinese  Customs  in  these  words  : — "  From 
Taku  to  Peking  the  foreigner  has  marched  trium- 
phantly ;  there  have  only  been  a  few  fights,  and  every 
foot  of  ground  has  not  had  to  be  contested,  but  yet 
every  hamlet,  or  village,  or  town  along  the  way  has 
the  mark  of  the  avenger  on  it:  populations  have 
disappeared,  houses  and  buildings  have  been  burnt  and 
destroyed,  and  crops  are  rotting  all  over  the  country 

^  The  SUg$  of  the  Peking  Legations^  1901,  Rev.  Roland  Allen,  M.  A, 
p.  86. 

«  The  Siege  in  Pekin^  1900,  W.  A  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  p.  12a 
'  "The  Boxer  Rising,  1900^"  reprinted  from  The  Shanghai  Mercury^ 

P-93. 

^  The  War  of  the  CtvUisaHons^  1901,  George  Lynch,  pp.  142-3. 


200         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

in  the  absence  of  reapers.  Remembering  how  these 
places  teemed  with  happy,  contented,  industrious  people 
last  spring,  it  is  hard  to  realise  that  autumn  does  not 
find  them  there — they  have  all  vanished,  and  that  alongf 
the  hundred  and  twenty  miles  between  beach  and 
capital  scarcely  a  sisfn  of  life  is  to  be  seen,  and  one 
cannot  help  sorrowing  over  the  necessity  or  the  fatality 
which  brought  about  such  woe  and  desolation.  Much 
of  the  destruction  was  doubtless  the  work  of  Chinese 
soldiers  and  Boxer  volunteers,  but,  according  to  all 
accounts,  what  they  left,  we  gleaned,  and,  if  report 
speaks  true,  little  mercy  was  felt,  and  less  displayed,  by 
some,  at  least,  wherever  living  Chinese  of  any  age  or 
either  sex  happened  to  be  fallen  in  with."*  "The  men 
of  one  flag  showed  their  detestation  of  the  most  ancient 
of  civilisations  by  the  wanton  destruction  of  whatever 
they  could  not  carry  off;  those  of  another  preached  the 
gospel  of  cleanliness  by  shooting  down  anyone  who 
committed  a  nuisance  in  public ;  whilst  those  of  a  third 
spread  their  ideas  on  the  sanctity  of  family  life  by 
breaking  into  private  houses,  and  ravishing  the  women 
and  girls  they  found  there :  so  said  gossip."^ 

Amid  such  happenings,  looting  was,  perhaps,  a  mere 
detail.  "This  China  expedition  has  been  the  biggest 
looting  excursion  since  the  days  of  Pizarro."  Thus,  Mr 
Lynch."  "  The  air  of  this  town  fairly  reeks  with  loot," 
Mr  Chamberlin  tells  us.  "  Loot  is  the  word  most  often 
heard.  From  all  I  can  gather,  everybody  stole  every- 
thing that  was  in  sight  when  the  troops  came  here.  It 
made  no  difference  who  the  man  was — he  was  robbed  if 
he  was  Chinese.  He  might  have  devoted  weeks  and 
months  to  the  service  of  the  Christians.  It  was  a  crime 
for  him  to  be  Chinese,  and  he  was  despoiled  of  any 
property  he  might  be  possessed  of."* 

1  These  from  ike  LandofStmm^  1901,  Sir  Robert  Hart,  Bt,  G.C.M.G., 
pi  85.  «  Ibid.,  p.  89. 

■  The  War  of  the  CivilisaHanSy  p.  179. 

^  Ordered  to  China,  1904,  Letters  of  Wilbur  J.  Chamberlin,  p.  99. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      201 

"The  wretched  people  who  had  been  plundered  or 
otherwise  ill-used,"  says  Mr  Putnam  Weale,  "had 
already  fallen  into  the  habit  of  asking  from  the  soldiery 
for  some  scrap  of  writing,  which  would  prove  that  they 
had  contributed  their  quota,  and  might  therefore  be 
exempted  from  further  looting.  Scrawled  in  soldiers' 
hands  were  such  things  as,  '  Defense  ahsolue  de  piller  : 
nous  autres  avons  taut  pris '  /  or  *  No  looting  permitted. 
This  show  is  cleaned  out.'  Everywhere  these  signs 
were  to  be  seen."* 

Nor  did  the  Imperial  Chambers  escape: — "The 
Winter  Palace  was  visited  during  the  winter  by  many 
thousand  persons,  military  and  civil,  and  later  by  a 
stream  of  tourists  .  .  .  from  the  very  first  opening  of 
these  apartments  to  the  select  circle,  the  curios  and 
bric-k-brac  began  to  disappear,  until,  ere  weeks  had 
passed,  nothing  portable  was  left  in  sight  ...  all  that  is 
really  valuable  having  been  removed  to  some  other 
sphere  of  usefulness.  As  the  restrictions  upon  entering 
became  more  stringent,  the  number  of  doors  closed  up 
.  .  .  multiplied.  .  .  .  And  the  public  was  politely  re- 
quested not  to  kick  the  Chinese  attendants  because 
they  declined  to  open  doors  which  they  were 
forbidden  to  unlock."*  "*One  cannot  go  without  a 
souvenir.*  That  word  souvenir  was  the  formula  which 
every  one  had  been  seeking  for.  Once  found,  they  all 
breathed  and  plundered  freely," "says  Dr  Dillon.  "It 
was  here,"  Mrs  Archibald  Little  relates,  "a  lady  said 
to  me  with  indignation :  '  Is  it  not  horrid  the  way  these 
eunuchs  keep  so  close  to  us  ? '  '  Well,  you  see,  they  do 
not  know  what  kind  of  people  we  are,  and  it  is  their  duty 
to  see  that  we  do  not  spoil  or  take  anything.'  'That's 
just  it,  how  can  I }'  she  said  with  exceeding  irritation."* 

1  Indiscreet  Letters  from  Peking^  1907,  edited  by  B.  L.  Putnam  Weale, 
pp.  253-4. 

'  China  in  Commlsiony  1901,  Arthur  H.  Smith,  vol  il,  pp.  529-30. 

>  The  Chinese  Wolf  and  the  European  Lamb  (Contemp.  Rev,^ 
January  1901),  Dr  £.  J.  Dillon,  p.  29. 

4  Roundabout  my  Peking  Garden^  1905,  Mrs  Archibald  Little^  p.  19, 


202  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

And  the  Temple  of  Heaven  would  seem  to  have 
been  laid  under  contribution  too.  At  Tientsin,  we 
learn  from  Mr  Savage- Landor,  "there  was  a  sjeat 
demand  for  Peking  loot,  printed  notices,  such  as  the 
following,  being  actually  posted  up  and  circulated  in  the 
settlement : — *  Wanted  to  buy,  some  of  the  dark  blue 
porcelain  vessels  taken  from  the  Temple  of  Heaven  at 
Pekin.    Apply  to  H.  cjo  Tientsin  Press.'  "* 

"And  yet,"  laments  the  Inspector-General  once 
more,  "looking  back  on  it  all,  and  granting  that  fires 
and  plunderings  in  the  capital  were  mainly  the  work  of 
soldiers  and  Boxers,  it  does  seem  a  pity  that  the 
splendid  warriors  of  Christian  Powers  should  have 
made  things  worse:  could  not  discipline  and  fine 
feeling  have  put  an  earlier  check  on  the  men  and 
placed  revenge  on  a  higher  plane?  What  with  com- 
mandeering here,  looting  there,  carrying  off  souvenirs 
elsewhere,  and  brutal  assaults  on  the  poor  women  who 
had  not  been  able  to  leave  the  city  with  the  other 
fugitives,  private  property  in  temporarily  deserted 
houses  disappeared,  and  the  comparatively  small 
number  of  Chinese  who  remained  drank  to  the  dr^fs 
the  cup  of  a  new  misery."  ^ 

To  follow  on  the  testimony.  In  1902,  Mrs  Archibald 
Little  asks: — "Where  in  aH  the  civilised  world  will  you 
find  the  European  churches  so  little  frequented  as  in 
China?  I  am  often  reminded  of  a  Commissioner  of 
Customs'  remark:  *The  Chinese  have  done  more  to 
heathenise  the  English  than  the  English  with  all  their 
missions  to  Christianise  them.'  ...  I  wondered  what 
the  subtle  influence  was  that  even  had  conquered  the 
conquering  Manchus  .  .  .  does  the  common  saying: 
'The  Chinese  care  for  nothing  but  money,  talk  of 
nothing  but  money,'  explain  it  at  all  ?  So  far  I  could  not 
make  out  that  it  was  anjrthing  else  the  Europeans 
wanted   to  get  out  of  the   Chinese.    Even  the  very 

1  China  and  the  Allies^  1901,  A.  Henry  Savage-Landor,  vol  ii.,  p.  412. 
<  These /torn  the  LandofSimm^  pp.  87-8. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      203 

missionaries  sent  out  to  teach  that  '  the  love  of  money 
is  the  root  of  all  evil/  seemed  in  many  cases  to  have 
caught  the  infection."*  And  Mr  Nichols  tells  us  of 
"a  fine  old  Mohammedan  tea-merchant  in  Sian,"  who 
remarked  to  him : — " '  For  my  part,  I  should  rather  like 
to  see  the  Christians  overthrow  the  idols,  and  convert 
China  to  the  worship  of  the  **  One  God," '  but  he  added, 
*  The  only  trouble  is,  that  if  Sian  were  a  Christian  city, 
it  would  be  as  bad  as  Shanghai.'"  * 

In  19041  we  hear  from  Mr  Brown  that  "when,  after 
his  return  from  a  long  journey  in  Asia,  Rev.  Dr 
George  Pentecost  was  asked — *  What  are  the  darkest 
spots  in  the  missionary  outlook?'  he  replied — '  In  lands 
of  spiritual  darkness  it  is  difficult  to  speak  of  "darkest 
spots."  I  should  say,  however,  that  if  there  is  a 
darkness  more  dark  than  other  darkness,  it  is  that 
which  is  cast  on  heathen  darkness  by  the  ungodliness 
of  the  American  and  European  Communities  that  have 
invaded  the  East  for  the  sake  of  trade  and  empire.  The 
corruption  of  Western  godliness  is  the  worst  evil  in  the 
East.  Of  course  there  are  many  noble  exceptions 
among  Western  commercial  men  and  their  families; 
but,  as  a  rule,  the  European  and  American  resident  in 
the  East  is  a  constant  contradiction  to  all  and  every- 
thing which  the  missionaries  stand  for.' "' 

In  igoSf  Rev.  E.  J.  Hardy,  Chaplain  to  the  Forces, 
informs  us  that  "  the  Chinese  say  that,  whil^  we  profess 
Christianity,  its  spirit  influences  our  actions  far  less  than 
do  economical  considerations,  that  Christianity  is  even 
less  to  us  than  is  Confucianism  to  them,  and  that  it  is 
like  our  impudence  to  send  missionaries  to  China."* 

The  American  Minister  to  China  makes  a  new 
sus^pestion  when,  in  1906,  we  find  him  remarking : — 
"  From  the  inability  of  the  foreigner  to  talk  with  the 

1  TAs  Land  of  the  Blue  Gown^  1902,  Mrs  Archibald  Little,  pp.  6-7. 
>  Through  Hidden  Shensi^  1903,  Francis  H.  Nichols,  p.  181. 
^  New  Forces  in  Old  China^  1904,  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  pp.  124-5. 
^  John  Chinaman  at  Home^  1905,  Rev.  £.  J.  Hardy,  M.A.,  p.  326. 


204         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

people,  and  his  complete  dependence  on  *  boys'  to 
interpret  for  him,  it  is  reasonable  to  say  that  he  learns 
very  little  about  the  real  character  of  the  Chinese- 
Nevertheless,  he  usually  goes  to  China  weighted  down 
with  reforms,  but  none  of  these  touch  the  conduct  of  the 
foreigners  towards  the  Chinese."  ^ 

At  the  Conference  of  Protestant  missionaries  in 
1907,  two  resolutions  were  passed  by  the  Medical 
missionaries ;  one  urging  abolition  of  the  use  of  opium, 
the  other  urging  "  restriction  of  the  sale  of  alcoholic 
beverages,  the  consumption  of  which  is  so  fast  increas- 
ing among  the  Chinese."*  In  the  consideration  of 
"Woman's  Work,"  the  Conference  placed  on  record  the 
following : — **  The  Conference  notes  with  pain  that  the 
temptations  threatening  the  virtue  of  young  women 
have  in  many  ways  increased  through  the  new  conditions 
in  China,  especially  at  the  open  ports,  that  vice  is 
encouraged  by  the  introduction  of  immoral  pictures, 
largely  in  connection  with  the  sale  of  cigarettes  ;  further 
that  cigarette  smoking  by  the  young  is  a  growing  evil ; 
also  that  the  traffic  in  slaves  between  Shanghai  and  the 
interior  has  assumed  large  proportions ;  it  is  therefore 
resolved  that  a  representative  Committee  be  appointed 
to  take  all  possible  steps  to  wage  war  against  vice, 
inculcate  purity,  and  to  save  the  fallen,"  • 

It  is  satisfactory  to  learn,  as  we  do,  on  the  authority 
of  Mr  M'Kenzie,  in  1907,  that  "the  gulf  between  the 
general  residents  and  the  missionaries  is  now  being 
narrowed  and  bridged  over.  Leading  European 
officials,  merchants,  and  publicists  have  been  won  by 
the  good  work  they  have  seen  accomplished."* 

And  it  is  possible  that  the  future  may  have  still 
better  things  in  store,  since  the  Anglican  Church  in 

*  CM'na  and  Her  People^  1906,  Hon.  Charles  Denby,  LL.D.,  vol  L, 
p.  162. 

*  The  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907  {North  China 
Daily  News  Office),  p.  3.  »  IbiiLy  p.  43. 

«  The  Unveiled  East,  1907,  F.  A.  M'Kenzie,  pp.  288-9. 


EUROPEAN  INFLUENCE  AND  EXAMPLE      205 

China  is  about  to  take  the  foreign  resident  in  hand. 
Resolution  VI I L  of  the  Anglican  Conference  at 
Shanghai,  held  in  April  1907,  reads  thus: — "That  in 
view  of  the  ever-increasing  importance  of  the  work  of 
the  Anglican  Communion  amongst  foreigners  resident 
in  Hong-Kong  and  China — both  in  regard  to  the 
necessary  influence  of  such  residents  upon  the  Church's 
Missions  to  the  Chinese,  and  with  a  view  to  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  the  residents  themselves  —  this 
Conference  hereby  requests  that  on  the  occasion  of  the 
next  Conference  which  will  consider  especially  the 
organisation  of  the  Church's  work  among  the  Chinese, 
the  Bishops  will  also  meet  with  the  chaplains  and  lay- 
representatives  of  the  foreign  congregations,  for  the 
consideration  of  the  Church's  work  amongst  foreign 
residents  in  China."  ^ 

*  The  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  p.  48. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION) 

It  may  be  noted  here,  that  the  question  as  to  whether 
an  influx  of  Chinese  citizens  into  any  other  country  is 
or  is  not  desirable  forms  no  part  of  the  present  con- 
sideration. The  issue  here  dealt  with  is,  in  the  words  of 
a  Chinese  writer,  that  "  while  the  white  men  were 
shutting  the  doors  of  their  different  colonies  or  settle- 
ments against  the  Chinese,  they  were  claiming  unheard- 
of  rights  in  the  native  land  of  the  very  people  to  whom 
they  had  denied  rights  and  privileges,  already  secured  to 
them  by  treaty  between  the  sovereign  representatives  of 
the  white  and  the  yellow  races  " ;  ^  and,  consequently,  to 
ask : — Is  such  conduct  on  the  part  of  the  Christian 
nations  calculated  to  advance  that  conversion  of  China 
which  they  profess  to  have  at  heart,  and  which  they  send 
forth  their  missionaries  to  effect  ? 

Occidentals  appear  only  too  ready  to  credit  the 
Chinese  with  Oriental  exclusiveness,  pride,  and  other 
amiable  qualities,  because  they  decline  to  receive  the 
foreigner  with  open  arms  and  clasp  him  to  their  bosoms. 
The  Celestial,  however,  may  well  reply,  that  he  is  only 
putting  into  practice  the  lessons  he  has  received.  For, 
so  comprehensive  has  been  China's  education  at  the 
hands  of  the  Christian  nations,  that  the  correct — if  not 
the  Scriptural — method  of  receiving  the  "  stranger  within 
thy  gates  "  has  found  a  place  therein. 

China's  instruction  in  this  matter  commenced  some 
three    centuries    ago  —  as    usual,    by    object-lessons. 

*  The  Chinese  Crisis  from  Within^  1901,  Wen  Ching,  p.  288. 

SM 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      207 

Captain  Brinkley  informs  us  that,  when  Spain  con- 
quered the  Philippines  in  IS43>  "considerable  settle- 
ments of  Chinese  traders  were  found.  .  .  .  The 
Spaniards  in  Manila  receiving  large  supplies  of  silver 
from  Mexico,  and  paying  it  out  for  Chinese  imports, 
against  which  they  had  virtually  no  exports  to  exchange, 
an  idea  gradually  gained  currency  in  China  that  Manila 
possessed  great  stores  of  the  precious  metals.  Thus 
the  people  of  the  Middle  Kingdom  began  to  grow 
inquisitive,  and  the  Spaniards  suspicious.  It  has  been 
shown  that  the  outcome  of  Chinese  suspicion  was  simply 
to  send  away  the  suspected  persons.  Spanish  suspicion 
took  another  form.  It  culminated  (1603)  in  an  indis- 
criminate massacre  which  lasted  several  days,  all  the 
Chinese  in  the  islands,  to  the  number  of  many 
thousands,  being  either  put  to  the  sword  or  sent  to  the 
galleys."  The  number  of  Chinese  visitors  was  limited, 
and  a  poll-tax,  amounting  to  £2  each,  was  imposed ; 
they  being  subjected  *' otherwise  to  very  harsh  treat- 
ment." In  1662,  occurred  another  massacre  of  Chinese 
settlers,  in  order  to  prevent  them  combining  with  the 
Chinese  pirates.^ 

The  manner  in  which  Holland  introduced  herself  to 
China  has  already  been  related.  In  the  subsequent 
negotiations  the  Dutch  ambassadors  and  their  suites 
*' observed  strictly  all  the  forms  prescribed  by  Chinese 
etiquette,  prostrating  themselves  and  knocking  their 
heads  upon  the  ground,  not  only  in  the  presence  of  the 
Emperor,  but  also  before  his  empty  throne  and  on  all 
officially  indicated  occasions.  .  .  .  From  the  Chinese 
point  of  view,  however,  the  record  cannot  have 
commanded  much  respect.  An  intercourse  commenced 
in  rapine  and  aggression  towards  a  nation  which  had 
never  provoked  them,  was  continued  by  fruitless 
obsequiousness,  and  included  an  act  comically  incon- 
sistent with  the  claims  they  advanced  in  their  own 
behalf,    namely,    an     interdict     (1839)    against     the 

^  China^  etc,^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  voL  x.,  pp.  177-8-9. 


208         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

admission  of  Chinese  settlers  to  any  of  the  Dutch  Indian 
Colonies,  since  the  skill  of  the  immigrrants  threatened 
to  ensrross  the  labour  market."  ^ 

"The  first  considerable  emigration  of  Chinese  to 
America  occurred,"  says  Mr  Stewart  Culin,  "at  the 
time  of  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California  in  1849."^ 
Writing  of  a  period  nearly  twenty  years  later  (1868), 
and  the  "yellow  peril"  of  that  date,  Mr  Griffis  tells 
us,  "these  were  the  days  when  we  were  begging  the 
Chinese  to  come  over  and  help  us  in  developing  our 
country.  We  had  not  yet  begun  to  violate  our  own 
treaties,  eat  our  own  words,  and  kick  out  the  guests  we 
had  once  invited."* 

Nor  was  this  last  mere  rhetoric,  since  it  is  on 
record  that  "in  January  i8s3»  Hon.  H.  H.  Haight, 
afterwards  Governor  of  California,  offered  at  a 
representative  meeting  of  San  Francisco  citizens  this 
resolution: — 'Resolved  that  we  regard  with  pleasure 
the  presence  of  greater  numbers  of  these  people 
(Chinese)  among  us,  as  affording  the  best  opportunity 
of  doing  them  good,  and  through  them  of  exerting  our 
influence  in  their  native  land.'  And  this  resolution  was 
unanimously  adopted."* 

Consequently,  Mr  Will,  of  the  Baltimore  Sun^ 
remarks : — "  Before  passing  to  the  subject  of  the  *  open- 
door,'  let  us  consider  an  incident  in  our  national  career 
which  tends  to  tie  our  hands,  in  a  moral  sense,  in  any 
effort  to  force  Americans  or  American  innovations  on 
China.  This  is  the  Chinese  exclusion  law  enacted  by 
the  United  States  Congress,  and  having  the  practical 
effect  of  shutting  out  from  this  country  all  Chinese 
immigrants.  ...  If  we  assume  the  right  to  protect 
ourselves  from  the  influx  of  another  race,  surely  the 
Chinese  can  claim  the  same  right."  ^ 

1  Brinkley,  voL  x.,  pp.  182-3. 

'  China  in  Amsrica^  1887,  Stewart  Culin,  p.  7. 

3  America  in  the  Easty  1899,  William  Elliott  Griffis,  p.  87. 

^  New  Forces  in  Old  China^  1904,  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  p.  157. 

*  The  World-Crisis  in  China^  1900,  Allen  S.  Will,  p.  48. 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      209 

In  1888-9,  we  learn  from  Sir  Robert  Douglas,  ''a 
counter-current  was  runninsf  against  the  Chinese  in  the 
United  States  and  the  Australian  Colonies.  For  some 
years  large  numbers  of  emigrants  from  China,  attracted 
by  the  gold-diggings  in  California,  had  passed  into  that 
state.  They  were  patient  and  industrious  workers,  and 
excited  no  iU-will  so  long  as  they  confined  their  attention 
to  gold-digging ;  but  when  they  began  to  settle  in  the 
towns,  and  to  compete  with  the  white  working  men,  a 
strong  opposition  to  their  presence  was  aroused.  As 
labourers  and  mechanics  they  were  in  all  respects  the 
equals  of  the  white  man,  while  their  economical 
habits  enabled  them  to  work  for  lower  wages  than 
their  rivals  would  accept.  This  condition  of  things 
aroused  an  active  campaign  against  them ;  and  political 
candidates  found  that  there  was  no  more  popular  policy 
than  that  which  was  directed  towards  the  exclusion  of 
the  Chinese  from  the  States.  So  strong  was  the 
movement,  that  the  legislature  passed  a  Bill  forbidding 
the  landing  of  Chinese  on  the  shores  of  the  States. 
The  anomalous  result  followed  that,  while  the  American 
Government  was  urging  the  Tsungrli  Yamin  [Chinese 
Foreign  Board]  to  grant  greater  privileges  to  American 
citizens  in  China,  the  American  legislature  was  doing 
that  which  had  been  universally  condemned  when 
China  had  attempted  to  impose  similar  disabilities  on 
immigrants  from  the  great  Republic."^ 

Two  industries  the  Chinese  seem  to  have  made 
particularly  their  own,  laundry-work  and  domestic 
service.  "The  occupation  of  laundrymen,  both  as 
employer  and  employee,"  says  Mr  Culin,  "  is  a  profitable 
one,  but  their  incessant  toil,  with  their  aptitude  for 
combination  and  freedom  from  many  of  the  expenses 
which  the  family  relation  entails  upon  all  other  classes 
may  be  regarded  as  the  secrets  of  their  success."* 
Wives  and  children  are  never  brought  with  them.' 

^  Europe  and  ihe  Far  Easty  1904,  Sir  Robert  K.  Douglas,  p.  275. 
^  China  in  America^  p.  10.  '  JHd^  p.  7. 


210  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  respect  of  domestic  service,  Colonel  Hollister, 
among  others,  testified  before  a  "  Congressional  Com- 
mission "  that  "  it  is  Chinese  or  nothing."  This  appears 
to  have  been  due  to  the  reluctance  of  white  women  to  go 
*'into  the  country" — seemingly  owing  to  the  scarcity  of 
"sweethearts"  and  other  necessaries  of  life.  The 
gallant  Colonel  must  have  been  a  man  of  iron  principles, 
for  having  said: — "I  have  not  any  [Chinese]  in  my 
house,  never  had  one,  and  would  not  have  one  myself,  as 
a  servant,"  he  recounted  his  experiences  at  the  hands  of 
white  servants:  "Since  4th  July  last,"  the  evidence 
was  given  in  November,  "  I  have  had  about  twenty  girls 
in  my  house.  I  pay  $35  a  month  to  the  cook,  and  $25 
to  the  girl  upstairs.  I  have  had  not  less  than  twenty- 
four,  if  not  more,  since  that  time.  Out  of  these,  four  or 
five  had  to  be  carried  away.  I  had  even  to  send  for  the 
police  to  get  them  out."  ^ 

The  violence  of  the  anti-Chinese  feeling  in  some 
quarters  may  be  gauged  by  the  evidence  of  Mr  John  F. 
Swift,  of  San  Francisco,  before  the  same  Commission. 
Mr  Seward  remarks  that,  it  "was  the  language  of 
extravagance  and  declamation  .  .  .  but  his  talk  indi- 
cates what  he  feels."  To  this  effect  Mr  Swift :— "This 
prejudice  has  grown.  It  is  ten  times  as  strong  as  it  was 
ten  years  ago.  In  1852  the  Chinamen  were  allowed  to 
turn  out  and  celebrate  the  Fourth  of  July,  and  it  was 
considered  a  happy  thing.  In  1862  they  would  have 
been  mobbed.  In  1872  they  would  have  been  burned 
at  the  stake."* 

The  condition  of  those  Chinese  who  worked  at  the 
mines  seems  to  have  left  something  to  be  desired, 
Concerning  the  collection  of  the  "  Miners'  Tax,"  we  learn 
from  Mr  Gibson,  in  1877,  that  "there  is  a  species  of 
semi-legalised  robbery  perpetrated  upon  the  Chinese. 
Many  of  the  collectors  are  gentlemen  in  every  sense  of 
the  word ;  but  there  are  others  who  take  advantage  of 

*  Chifteu  ImmigraUon^  1881,  George  F.  Seward,  pp.  132-3. 

*  Ibid,y  pp.  250-1, 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      211 

their  position  to  extort  the  last  dollar  from  the  poverty- 
stricken  Chinese.  They  date  licenses  back,  exact  pay  in 
some  cases  for  extra  trouble  in  hunting  up  the  terrified 
and  flying  Chinamen,  and  by  various  devices  fatten 
themselves  upon  the  spoils  thus  obtained.  The  com- 
plaints of  the  injured  and  oppressed  find  no  open  ear ; 
for,  is  it  not  declared  by  the  Supreme  Court,  the  highest 
tribunal  in  the  land,  that  their  oaths  are  not  to  be 
regarded.  .  .  .  There  were  also  bogus  collectors,  a  set 
of  vagabonds,  who  made  their  living  by  putting  off 
spurious  receipts  of  mining  taxes,  coal  and  road  taxes. 
Mr  Speer  heard  one  of  these  vagabonds  address  another 
of  his  clan  thus:  'I  had  no  money  to  keep  Christmas 
with,  but  went  among  the  Chinamen,  and  sold  them,  to 
the  amount  of  J9,  counterfeit  receipts.' "  * 

"  If  we  except  the  Jews  in  former  times,"  says  Dr 
Condi t,  **no  people  have  been  more  despised  and 
persecuted  than  the  Chinamen  in  this  Christian  land. 
They  have  been  stoned,  spit  upon,  beaten,  mobbed, 
their  property  destroyed,  and  they  themselves  unjustly 
imprisoned  and  murdered.  All  this  in  free  America, 
under  our  flag,  and  in  the  face  of  sacred  treaty  rights."* 

The  delicate  attentions  bestowed  upon  the  Chinese 
seem  to  have  been  shared  by  those  who  laboured  for 
their  spiritual  welfare.  Thus,  we  find  that,  in  i868. 
Rev.  Otis  Gibson  was  appointed  by  a  Mission  Board  in 
California,  as  a  home  missionary  to  the  Chinese,  and, 
**for  fifteen  years  he  laboured  for  the  uplifting  of  the 
Chinese  on  the  Pacific  coast,  amid  such  difiiculties  as  are 
not  easy  to  conceive  in  a  Christian  land.  Persecution, 
libels,  threats  to  his  life,  dangers  such  as  he  never  knew 
in  China,  crowded  upon  and  around  him  here.  The 
windows  of  his  home  were  broken,  and  his  character 
libelled,  one  newspaper  giving  itself  especially  to  this  work. 
He  was  burned  in  effigy  in  the  presence  of  the  Mayor  of 
San  Francisco,  that  official  looking  smilingly  on.    When 

1  The  Chinese  in  America^  18779  R«v.  O.  Gibson,  A.M.,  pp.  236-7. 
>  The  Chinaman  as  we  see  him^  i9QI»  Rev.  Ira  M.  Coodit,  D,D.,  p.  83. 


212  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

at  one  time,  as  a  free  American  citizen,  he  entered  the 
Californian  Hall  of  Legislature,  a  hoodlum  member 
moved  that  he  be  expelled  from  the  House,  because  *he 
was  the  most  obnoxious  man  to  the  anti-Chinese  party 
on  the  Pacific  coast'  At  one  time,  for  weeks,  when  he 
went  from  his  home,  his  wife  felt  no  assurance  that 
he  would  return  alive,  so  frequent  were  the  threats 
against  his  life."^ 

In  China  itself  we  learn : — '*  Matters  were  beginningr 
to  settle  down  quietly  after  the  riots  on  the  Yangtze, 
when  the  Chinese  received  a  just  cause  of  offence  at 
the  hands  of  the  United  States  of  America.  Already 
every  possible  impediment  had  been  put  in  the  way  of 
intending  Chinese  immigrants  into  the  States ;  and  in 
1892  the  popular  prejudice  against  natives  of  China 
invading  the  land  of  the  Stars  and  Stripes  found  fresh 
and  drastic  expression  in  an  Act  known  as  the  Geary 
Exclusion  Act.  By  this  instrument  the  admittance  into 
the  United  States  of  Chinese  and  persons  of  Chinese 
descent  was  strictly  prohibited.  When  the  provisions 
of  this  Act  were  made  known  to  the  Ministers  of  the 
Tsuneli  Yamin^  they  protested  against  them,  as  forming 
a  breach  in  the  comity  of  nations,  and  urged,  with  reason, 
that  the  Americans  had  no  right  to  force  China  to 
receive  their  fellow-citizens,  while  they  refused  to  allow  a 
native  of  China  to  set  foot  on  the  soil  of  America.  The 
feeling  was  so  strong  in  China,  and  even  in  the  States, 
against  the  enforcement  of  the  Act,  that  it  was  allowed  to 
remain  a  dead  letter.  .  .  .  The  very  passing  of  it,  how- 
ever, made  a  deep  impression  on  the  Chinese  hierarchy, 
who  recognised  to  the  full  that  an  attempt  had  been  made 
to  impose  an  injustice  on  their  countrymen."  * 

The  effects  of  an  amended  Act  of  the  following 
session  are  thus  described  by  Mr  Beck : — *'  Merchants 
and  students  are  allowed  to  travel  between  this  country 
and  their  native  China,  or  other  countries,  upon  the 

^  The  Chinese  Recorder  and  Missionary  Joumaly  April  1889,  P*  I73- 
'  Europe  and  the  Far  East,  1904,  Sir  Robert  K.  Douglas,  pp.  299-3oa 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      213 

mere  prima  facte  proof  of  their  standing  as  such. 
With  the  labourer,  however,  it  is  different :  in  the  first 
place,  under  its  provisions,  if  he  leaves  the  country  he  is 
not  allowed^  to  return  at  all,  unless  he  can  prove  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  Collector  of  Customs  of  the  city 
wherein  he  resides,  that  he  leaves  behind  him  a  wife 
or  children,  or  both,  $1000  actual  debt,  or  that  there  is 
some  blood  relative  dependent  on  him.  Even  after 
proving  either  one  or  all  three  of  these  conditions,  he 
must  give  up  his  registration  certificate  at  the  point  of 
departure  from  the  United  States'  boundaries,  taking 
therefor  a  receipt.  His  visit  to  his  native  land  is  really 
no  more  than  a  leave  of  absence  for  a  time  limit  of  one 
year  from  date  of  departure.  It  is  only  upon  producing, 
to  the  satisfaction  of  the  United  States'  representative 
at  the  city  of  his  leave  taking,  the  very  best  reasons  for 
his  remaining  away  longer  than  the  original  period 
granted,  that  the  time  will  be  extended,  and  then  only 
upon  his  report  being  vised  by  the  Chinese  Consul, 
may  his  vacation  be  extended  for  another  year.  Should 
he  fail  to  return  to  his  original  point  of  departure  within 
the  United  States,  and  there  deliver  up  the  receipt  for 
his  registration  papers,  he  will  not  be  allowed  to  re-enter 
the  land  of  the  free.  Should  he  be  but  one  day  late 
beyond  the  second  year  limit,  his  certificate  is  con- 
fiscated, and  admission  refused."^    ' 

**  A  Chinese  merchant  and  his  wife,  of  unquestioned 
standing  in  San  Francisco,  made  a  trip  to  China,  and 
while  there,  a  child  was  born.  On  returning  to  their 
home  in  America,  the  sapient  officials  could  interpose  no 
objection  to  the  admission  of  the  parents,  but  peremp- 
torily refused  to  admit  the  three-months-old  baby,  for 
never  having  been  in  this  country,  it  had  no  right  to 
enter  it."  Appeal  was  made  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  at  Washington,  and  the  action  of  the  local 
officials  was  officially  sustained  by  him,  as  in  accordance 
with  the  law ;  but  Hon.  Daniel  Manning,  "  in  approving 

^  New  YarJd^s  Chinatown^  1898,  Louis  J.  Beck,  pp.  202-3. 


214         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

their  action,  had  the  courageous  good  sense  to  write : — 
*  Burn  all  this  correspondence,  let  the  poor  little  baby 
go  ashore,  and  don't  make  a  fool  of  yourself/  "  ^ 

Nor  does  the  lot  of  the  merchant  or  student  from 
China,  to  whom,  eventually,  admission  was  granted, 
seem  to  have  been  all  they  could  have  wished.  The 
Chinese  Consul-General  describes  their  incarceration, 
while  the  necessary  certificates  are  being  passed  back- 
wards and  forwards,  in  "a  dirty  dungeon  in  San  Fran- 
cisco called  the  Detention  Loft."  In  one  prison  "are 
held  for  long  periods,  Chinese  gentlemen  worth  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  dollars,  men  of  vast  interests,  tea- 
merchants,  scholars,  owners  of  extensive  establishments 
of  Chinaware,  bankers,  owners  of  ships.  They  are 
deprived  of  their  liberty,  and  subjected  to  indignities  of 
exquisite  refinement,  while  their  pecuniary  loss  is 
beyond  computation.  ...  By  recent  rulings  of  the 
Treasury  Department,  all  Chinese  bankers,  lawyers, 
teachers,  and  missionaries,  are  debarred  from  the 
United  States,  as  not  being  entitled  to  enter  this 
country,  a  ruling  which  was  never  made  or  thought  of 
before,  and  which  entails  additional  hardship  on  the 
Chinese." « 

"The  law  thus  discriminates  against  class  and  race," 
says  Dr  Condi t.  "It  treats  Chinese  as  no  other  nation 
under  the  sun  is  treated.  These  discriminating  laws 
are  a  great  and  unnecessary  wrong  against  a  defenceless 
people,  and  their  harsh  execution  makes  matters  still 
worse.  The  poor  Chinaman,  who  has  no  friend,  must 
abide  by  the  requirements  of  an  unjust  law.  He  feels  the 
great  injustice  that  is  done  him  by  our  Government, 
and  is  rightly  indignant  at  the  manner  in  which  he  is 
treated  by  a  so-called  Christian  people.  Yet  we 
wonder  that  he  is  so  slow  in  conforming  to  our  ways, 

^  New  Forces  in  Old  Ckina^  1904,  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  p.  160. 

■  "The  Attitude  of  the  United  States  towards  the  Chinese**  {The 
Fcruniy  June  1900,  p.  396),  Ho  Yow,  Chinese  Consul-General  to  The 
United  States. 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      215 

and  accepting  the  Christianity  which  we  seek  to  impose 
upon  him."^ 

The  year  1906  witnessed  a  terrible  earthquake  at 
San  Francisco,  followed  by  an  equally  disastrous  fire. 
"As  soon  as  it  was  safe  to  do  so,"  wrote  the  special 
correspondent   of  the    Times,    "an   army   of  looters 
descended  on  Chinatown,  and  with  hardly  a  pretence 
of  interference  on  the  part  of  the  troops  and  police, 
proceeded  to  gather  up  everything  of  value  that  could 
be  found,  digging  in    the  ruins  and    carrying   away 
thousands  of  Oriental  art  objects  that  had  escaped 
destruction.    These  looters  included  wealthy  citizens 
and  their  wives  and  children,  and  even  members  of  the 
California  Militia  on  leave.     Looting  was  attempted 
by  some  persons  in  other  parts  of  the  city,  but  was 
promptly   suppressed    by   the    military;    but    until   a 
couple  of  days  ago,  nothing  was  done  to  protect  the 
property  of  the  helpless  Chinese.    It  is  suspected  that 
representations  were  made  to  the  authorities  in  Washing- 
ton by  the  Chinese  Legation.    At  any  rate,  adequate 
protection  is  now  afforded  by  Federal  troops,  and  any 
further  attempt  at   looting   will   be   prevented.    The 
Secretary  of  the  Chinese  Legation  is  here,  and  behind 
the  mask  of  Oriental  passivity,  his  indignation  at  the 
treatment  of  his  fellow-countrymen  is  manifest. 

It  is  not  alone  in  the  loss  of  their  property  that  the 
Chinese  have  suffered.  While  relief  has  been  freely 
distributed  to  everyone  else,  they  have  been  left  largely 
to  shift  for  themselves,  and  many  of  them  must  have 
suffered  terribly.  The  Chinese  refugees  at  Fort  Mason 
are  being  properly  cared  for  by  the  United  States  army 
authorities,  but  those  who  fled  to  Oakland  and  other 
points  have  been  less  fortunate.  .  .  . 

In  San  Francisco  there  is  a  decided  movement  in 

favour  of  removing  Chinatown  from  the  centre  of  the 

city  and  segregating  the  Chinese  at  Hunter's  Point,  on 

the  east  shore  of  the  peninsula.     It  is  very  doubtful  if 

^  The  Chinaman  asw€s$e  him^  1901,  Rev.  Ira  M.  Condit,  D.D.,  p.  87. 


216         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

this  can  be  legally  done,  and  it  is  certain  that,  if  by 
some  legal  pretext  the  Chinese  can  be  deprived  of  the 
use  of  their  own  property,  moral  injustice  will  be 
wrought  .  .  . 

Dr  Timmon,  who  is  chairman  of  the  committee 
which  is  considering  the  question  of  the  removal  of 
the  Chinese,  startled  the  relief  committee  by  declaring 
that  the  Chinese  had  been  so  irritated  by  the  treatment 
to  which  they  had  been  subjected  since  the  fire,  that 
any  attempt  to  remove  Chinatown  would  be  the  last 
straw,  and  would  be  followed  by  a  transfer  of  the  trade 
to  some  other  city."  ^ 

Perhaps  the  gentleman  quoted  by  Mr  Robertson- 
Scott,  "one  of  the  most  trustworthy  writers  on  the 
Middle  Kingdom,  himself  an  American  missionary," 
who,  referring  to  Dr  Morrison's  statement  that  every 
part  of  China  had  been  explored,  declared  that  ''it  is 
less  dangerous  for  a  foreigner  to  cross  China,  than  for 
a  Chinese  to  cross  the  United  States,"^  was  not  far 
wide  of  the  mark. 

To  conclude  with  America.  On  21st  February 
1907,  we  find  that  "President  Roosevelt  has  signed 
the  Immigration  Bill  excluding  Asiatic  labourers  from 
the  United  States."' 

'*  A  similar  movement  in  Canada,"  says  Sir  Robert 
Douglas,  ''had  resulted  in  the  same  prohibition.  In 
each  case  the  habits  and  morals  of  the  Chinese  were 
put  forward  as  the  exciting  causes  of  their  exclusion. 
A  more  practical  motive  was  to  be  traced,  however,  in 
the  movement;  and  if  the  Chinese  settlers  had  not 
been  so  frugal  and  industrious,  it  is  probable  that  they 
would  have  been  allowed  to  domicile  themselves  with- 
out question."* 

The  question  of  habits  and  morals  seems  capable 

^  The  Times,  3rd  May  1906. 

*  The  People  of  China,  19CX),  J.  W.  Robertson-Scott,  p.  176. 
'  The  Times,  21st  February  1907. 

*  Europe  <ind  the  Far  East,  1904,  Sir  Robert  K.  Douglas,  p.  375. 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      217 

of  being  quite  easily  shelved  if  it  threaten  to  become 
inconvenient.  Hence  the  announcement  from  Victoria 
(British  Columbia),  under  date  8th  August  1906: — 
"The  $500  (;^ioo)  head-tax  which  is  operative  here 
on  Chinese  immigrants,  is  causing  a  scarcity  of  un- 
skilled labour.  The  salmon-canners  are  petitioning  for 
a  reduced  head-tax  in  order  to  permit  Chinese  to  enter 
the  province."^ 

Possibly  the  salmon-canners  got  over  their  diffi- 
culties— with  or  without  help  from  the  Chinese  does 
not  appear.  In  any  case,  we  learn  from  Ottawa: — 
"The  Legislature  of  British  Columbia  concluded  its 
labours  yesterday  [2Sth  April  1907J  The  Lieut - 
Governor,  Mr  Dunsmuir,  took  the  unusual  step  of 
reserving  the  Royal  Assent  to  one  Bill  respecting 
Immigration.  The  object  of  the  Bill  was  to  keep  out 
Asiatics,  especially  Hindus  and  Japanese.  It  directly 
violates  the  provisions  of  the  Anglo-Japanese  Treaty 
to  which  Canada  became  a  party  last  year.  Great 
satisfaction  is  expressed  here  at  Mr  Dunsmuir's  action 
in  refusing  assent  to  a  measure  calculated  to  irritate 
the  Japanese  as  well  as  our  fellow-subjects  in  India."* 
The  Chinese,  who  are  also  Asiatics,  may  possibly  be 
of  the  same  mind,  when  they  hear  Europeans  loudly 
insisting  on  the  "  Policy  of  the  Open  Door" — in  China. 

Later  in  the  same  year  we  learn : — "The  growth  of 
the  anti- Asiatic  feeling  on  the  Pacific  coast  found  ex- 
pression in  Vancouver  last  evening  in  a  most  unfortunate 
demonstration  against  Japanese  and  Chinese.  At  the 
conclusion  of  the  meeting  of  the  anti-Japanese  and 
Korean  League,  fifty  or  sixty  rowdies  marched,  about 
nine  o'clock,  to  the  section  of  the  city  where 
are  situated  a  number  of  shops  kept  by  Japanese  and 
Chinese,  and  broke  the  windows  by  throwing  stones  at 
them.  Later  the  attack  was  resumed.  The  mob,  by 
this  time,  had  increased  to  five  hundred;  and  more 
shop-fronts   were   destroyed,  and   one   Japanese  was 

>  T^  Tinus^  loth  August  1906.  >  Ibid.^  vjih  April  1907. 


218         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

wounded.  The  city  police  were  soon  on  the  spot,  and 
succeeded  in  dispersinsr  the  mob  after  a  considerable 
amount  of  property  had  been  destroyed."^ 

Also : — "  Lest  people  at  home  should  for  one  moment 
imagine  that  the  public  opinion  of  this  city  (Vancouver) 
is  in  favour  of  the  regrettable  scenes  that  occurred  here 
last  week,  the  following  lines  are  written.  The  actual 
facts  of  the  case  were  as  follows : — A  meeting  of  a 
political  association,  closely  identified  with  the  ex- 
clusion of  Asiatics  was  held  on  that  particular 
Saturday  evening,  and  it  was  by  some  of  the  speakers 
at  that  meeting  that  much  inflammatory,  and,  at  the 
same  time,  disgraceful,  advice  was  tendered  to  the 
Saturday-night  crowd,  by  speakers  who  ought  to  have 
known  better.  The  temper  of  the  crowd  had,  up  to 
this  time,  been  excellent,  and  it  was  not  until  a 
prominent  local  minister  had  actually  informed  his 
hearers  that  his  very  pulpit  was  in  danger  of  being 
handed  over  to  the  Asiatics,  that  the  mob  surged 
down  on  the  Chinese  quarter,  ...  As  the  mob, 
deriving  their  excitement  from  the  same  source  as 
does  any  such  mob  on  'wages  night'  in  the  Old 
Country,  poured  into  the  Chinese  quarter,  they  began 
to  break  every  window  they  came  across.  Such 
methods  recommended  themselves  to  the  large  number 
of  small  boys  who  had  by  this  time  helped  to  swell  the 
total  of  the  rioters.  The  Chinese  acted  in  the  circum- 
stances with  the  greatest  forbearance,  kept  themselves 
carefully  indoors,  and  refrained  from  the  slightest 
attempt  at  retaliation.  The  police,  owing  to  the 
paucity  of  their  numbers,  were  powerless,  so  the  mob 
wreaked  their  own  sweet  will  on  all  the  Chinese  property 
they  came  across."  * 

"  Influenced  by  the  examples  thus  set  them, "continues 
Sir  Robert  Douglas,  "  the  working  classes  in  Australia 
and  New  Zealand  raised  the  standard  of  war  against 
Chinese  immigrants.    At  first  a  poll-tax  of  jC^o  per 

1  The  Times,  9th  September  1907.       *  /foV^,  i8th  October  1907. 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      219 

head  was  imposed  on  all  Celestials  as  they  stepped  on 
the  shores  of  Australasia.  Being  further  from  the 
Chinese  coast  than  is  the  American  continent,  Australia 
had  less  reason  to  complain  of  the  influx  of  these 
visitors :  not  more  than  an  average  of  six  hundred  a 
year  presented  themselves  for  landing  between  the 
years  of  1861  and  1886.  But  even  these  small 
numbers  offended  the  white  people ;  and  it  was  proposed 
that  an  order  should  be  issued  peremptorily  forbidding 
the  importation  of  these  industrious  Asiatics.  Before, 
however,  this  could  be  done,  the  matter  had  been  auto- 
matically settled  by  the  fact  that  the  immigration 
practically  ceased."  ^ 

We  learn  from  Sir  Charles  Dilke  that  "  the  dislike 
of  the  Australians  for  the  Chinese  is  so  strong  and  so 
general,  that  it  is  like  the  dislike  of  terriers  for  rats.  .  .  • 
Nothing  will  so  rapidly  bring  together  an  Australian 
crowd  as  the  rumour  that  Chinamen  or  rabbits  are 
likely  to  be  landed  from  a  ship,  and  the  one  class  of 
intruder  is  about  as  popular  as  the  other."*  Further  : 
"An  Australian  intercolonial  conference  has  declared 
the  Chinese  'an  alien  race,  incapable  of  assimilation 
in  the  body  politic,  strangers  to  our  civilisation,  out  of 
sympathy  with  our  aspirations,  and  unfitted  for  our 
free  institutions.' "  *  *'  And  Sir  Henry  Parkes,  speaking 
on  the  Chinese  Restriction  Bill,  1888,  in  the  New 
South  Wales  L^slative  Assembly,  put  the  case  for 
Australia  as  strongly  as  anyone  could  :  '  In  this  crisis,' 
said  he,  *  of  the  Chinese  question,  we  have  acted  calmly 
with  a  desire  to  see  clearly  before  us ;  but  at  the  same 
time  we  have  acted  with  decision,  and  we  do  not  mean 
to  turn  back.  Neither  for  H.M.  ships  of  war,  nor  for 
H.  M.  Representative  on  the  spot,  nor  for  the  Secretary 
of  State  for  the  Colonies  do  we  intend  to  turn  aside  from 

*  Europe  and  the  Far  East^  pp.  275-6. 

«  Problems  of  Greater  Britain^  1890,  Rt.  Hon.  Sir  Charles  Dilke, 
Bart,  p.  215. 
»  Ihid.^  p.  531. 


220         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

our  purpose,  which  is  to  terminate  the  landing  of  Chinese 
on  these  shores  for  ever,  except  under  restrictions 
imposed  by  the  Bill,  which  will  amount,  and  which 
are  intended  to  amount,  to  practical  prohibition.'"^ 

Hence,  "  the  few  Chinamen  in  Australia  subsist  on 
sufferance.  .  .  .  Yet  many  an  hotel  in  the  Colonies  has 
been  burned  to  the  ground,  for  no  other  reason  than 
that  the  owner  had  employed  a  Chinese  cook.  The 
disabilities  of  the  Jews  in  mediaeval  Europe  sink  into 
nothingness,  when  compared  with  the  disabilities  of  the 
Chinese  in  modern  Australia."  * 

"The  Government  of  New  Zealand,"  we  further 
learn  from  Sir  Charles  Dilke,  "  has  exceeded  all  others 
in  the  high-handed  character  of  its  action  against  the 
Chinese.  It  reprinted  without  change,  and  put  in  force 
in  1888,  a  proclamation  by  Sir  Arthur  Gordon  dated 
1 88 1,  declaring  all  places  where  there  is  a  Chinese 
population,  infected  with  small-pox,  and  imposing 
quarantine  upon  all  persons  coming  from  them,  or 
having  received  any  person  coming  from  them."' 

In  1898,  there  appear  to  have  been  3500  Chinese 
in  New  Zealand.  "At  one  time,"  according  to  Mr 
Reeves,  "they  were  twice  as  numerous.  Then  a  poll- 
tax  of  ;^io  was  levied  on  all  new-comers.  Still  a  few 
score  came  in  every  year,  paying  the  tax  or  having  it 
paid  for  them,  and  about  as  many  went  home  to  China, 
usually  with  jC 200,  or  more,  about  them.  In  1895,  the 
tax  was  raised  to  jCso,  and  this  seems  likely  to  bring 
the  end  quickly.  Despised,  disliked,  dwindling,  the 
Chinese  are  bound  soon  to  disappear  from  the  Colony."  * 

We  may  now  glance  at  our  own  country.  Under 
the  significant  title  of  "Prejudice  and  Evidence,"  the 
Morning'  Post  informs  its  readers  that  "the   recent 

'  TA€  Asiatic  Danger  in  the  Colonies^  1907,  L.  E.  Neame,  p.  79. 
'  The    Chinaman    Abroad  {^Nineteenth    Century^    October    1894), 
Edmund  Mitchell,  p.  620. 

*  Problems  of  Greater  Britain^  p.  531. 

^  The  Long  White  CUmd^  1898,  William  Pember  Reeves,  pp.  398-9. 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      221 

arrival  of  thirty-two  Chinamen  in  Liverpool  has  been 
much  resented  by  residents  of  the  city,  and  there  have 
been  rumours  of  a  '  terrible  condition  of  affairs '  in  the 
Chinese  quarter  of  the  city.  It  became  necessary,  in 
view  of  these  reports,  to  ascertain  the  facts,  and  a 
special  meeting  of  the  City  Council  was  held  yesterday 
to  discuss  the  question.  The  Council  having  devoted 
an  hour  and  a  half  to  the  consideration  of  the  matter, 
resolved  by  forty  votes  against  six,  to  appoint  a  com- 
mission of  inquiry  comprised  of  nine  councillors,  two 
clergymen,  two  doctors,  and  two  local  newspaper 
editors,  to  investigate  and  report  on  the  conditions  of 
the  Chinese  settlement  in  the  city,  and  to  invite  evidence 
on  the  moral  and  economic  effect  of  the  increased 
importation  of  Chinese  into  Liverpool.  It  was  also 
agreed  to  call  the  attention  of  the  Government  to  the 
serious  increase  of  Chinese  in  Liverpool,  and  to  urge  the 
Home  Secretary  to  enforce  the  Aliens  Act  rigidly  in  the 
interest  of  the  moral  welfare  of  the  people,  and  in  that 
of  the  unemployed.  In  the  course  of  the  sitting  the 
Head  Constable  reported  that  most  of  the  resident 
Chinese  were  doing  fairly  well.  Poor  Chinamen  were 
helped  by  their  own  countrymen.  Opium  smoking 
was  prevalent,  but  it  was  not  illegal,  and  no  crimes  had 
occurred,  so  far  as  was  known,  owing  to  the  use  of  the 
drug.  A  good  deal  of  gambling  went  on,  and  the 
police  treated  the  Chinese  exactly  as  they  treated  the 
British,  prosecuting  whenever  evidence  justified  it.  Of 
all  the  foreign  element  in  Liverpool,  the  Chinese  gave 
the  police  the  least  trouble,  and  the  authorities  had  no 
complaints  of  the  decoying  of  young  girls.  They  were 
fully  alive  to  their  duty,  and  would  take  prompt  action 
if  proof  were  discovered  of  the  alleged  rampant  crime 
and  debauchery  in  the  Chinese  quarter."^ 

Transferring  our  investigation  to  China,  we  learn 
that  "  the  publication  in  the  native  papers  of  the  anti- 
slavery   South   African   election   charges  has   had   a 
*  The  Morning  Post^  13th  December  1906. 


222  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

deplorable  effect,  while  the  publication  of  English 
cartoons,  showing  Chinese  driven  with  whips  in  chains 
to  labour,  Engflishmen  shooting  runaway  Chinese  in 
sport,  and  Englishmen  torturing  Chinese  at  the  mines, 
can  only  make  Englishmen  living  in  China  wonder  why 
retaliation  is  so  infrequent."  ^ 

Also : — "The  first  number  of  the  first  illustrated  paper 
ever  published  in  Peking  has  just  been  issued,  called 
Peiching  Huapao.  It  is  written  in  a  popular  style, 
and  is  obtaining  a  large  circulation.  A  feature  of  the 
paper  is  the  reproduction  in  an  exaggerated  form  of  the 
Chinese  labour  cartoons  distributed  at  the  last  general 
election.  Two  published  in  this  number  represent  a 
Chinese  miner  in  rags  and  shoeless,  his  face  distorted 
with  pain,  tightly  handcuffed  across  a  beam.  The 
letterpress  explains  that  these  cartoons  illustrate  the 
treatment  to  which  miners  are  subjected  in  South 
Africa,  and  are  reproduced  from  an  English  book.  .  .  . 
Rarely  have  anti-foreign  publications  from  the  Chinese 
themselves  been  more  calculated  to  inflame  resentment 
against  foreigners  than  these  infamous  pictures  copied 
from  English  election  literature,  whose  reproduction  we 
can  neither  prevent  nor  protest  against."  * 

And  now,  a  European  authority  will  sum  up  the  case 
for  us.  "The  whole  question  of  Oriental  Immigration 
into  the  white  man's  country  is  an  exceedingly  difficult 
thing  to  handle.  That  the  white  man  should  enter  the 
territory  of  an  Asiatic  nation  is  regarded  as  a  perfectly 
right  and  proper  thing.  That  he  should  force  himself 
and  his  religion,  his  commerce,  and  even,  in  too  many 
cases,  his  vices,  upon  nations  that  did  not  want  to  have 
anything  to  do  with  him ;  and  sought  only  to  live  their 
own  lives  in  peace,  is  regarded  as  not  only  right,  but 
meritorious.  That  he  should  force  the  Asiatics  to  give 
him  concessions  of  railways,  steamships,  mines,  and 
anything  else  that  he  may  covet,  is  thought  entirely  just 

^  The  Times^  24th  April  1906. 
>  Ibid,^  2nd  June  190(5. 


THE  OPEN  DOOR  (CHRISTIAN  VERSION)      223 

and  equitable.  But,  when  a  few  hundreds  or  thousands 
of  these  Asiatics  go  to  the  white  man's  country,  not  as 
conquerors,  or  monopolists,  or  cancessiannatres,  but 
simply  as  humble  labourers,  offering  labour  for  wages 
which  satisfy  their  frugal  requirements,  there  is  wild 
excitement,  political  agitation,  and  mob  violence.  But 
if  these  Oriental  races  enter  the  white  man's  country, 
who  has  the  white  man  to  blame  but  himself?  He 
laboured  very  hard  to  stir  up  all  those  quiescent  races, 
who  did  not  want  him,  and  did  their  best  to  remain  in 
their  ancient  ways.  He  was  warned  by  his  own  wise 
teachers,  that  some  day  he  would  succeed,  and  that  he 
would  have  cause  to  be  sorry.  His  own  political 
economy  taught  him  that  people  who  work  sixteen 
hours  a  day,  who  do  not  drink,  who  live  with  a  frugality 
of  which  he  has  no  conception,  must  prove  terribly 
formidable  competitors  with  nations  who  limit  their 
work  and  their  output,  and  live  expensively.  He  would 
not  listen  so  long  as  he  could  wring  concessions  from  the 
Asiatics,  and  compel  them  to  trade  at  the  point  of  the 
bayonet.  He  is  now  going  to  find  out  that  his  teachers 
were  wise,  and  his  political  economy  sound ;  but  he  is 
taking  in  a  very  mutinous  and  unreasonable  spirit, 
the  A  B  C  of  what  is  going  to  be  a  long  course  of 
lessons."  ^ 

1  The  TtmeSf  28th  October  1907. 


CHAPTER  V 


"experientia  docet' 


"  That  China  is  learning,  and  learning  widely,  if  not 
always  wisely,  cannot  be  questioned.  She  must  learn 
and  learn  vastly  more  than  has  ever  hitherto  entered 
into  her  curriculum,  before  she  is  qualified  up  to  the 
measure  of  her  aspirations,  or  can  meet  the  requirements 
of  the  international  comity."^ 

Thus  spoke  a  Protestant  missionary  in  1890,  and  as 
the  time  for  China's  advanced  course  of  studies — 
possibly  the  "New  Learning,"  of  the  progress  and 
effects  of  which  there  is  as  yet  no  sufficient  experience 
— is  upon  us,  we  may  inquire  what  she  has  already 
learned. 

"The  essential  character  of  Western  civilisation," 
wrote  the  Military  Attache  of  China  in  Paris,  "is  to 
be  encroaching.  There  is  no  necessity  to  demonstrate 
that.  In  former  times  the  hordes  of  barbarians  were 
likewise  encroaching,  not  with  the  object  of  bringing 
the  benefits  of  a  new  spirit,  but  for  the  purpose  of 
pillaging  and  ruining  prosperous  countries.  The 
civilised  people  of  the  West  follow  the  same  method 
with  the  pretension  of  establishing  universal  happiness. 
The  initial  point  of  their  idea  of  progress  is  violence. 
.  .  .  War  and  pauperism  are  the  two  scourges  of 
humanity,  and  when  China  is  convinced  that  the  spirit 
of  innovation,  of  which  the  Western  world  is  so  vain, 
with  all  those  ingenious  inventions  whose  wonders  we 
applaud  so  much,  possess  the  secret  of  making  nations 

'  Records  of  Shanghai  Coftference^  1890^  p.  19. 
as4 


^*EXPERIENTIA  DOCET''  225 

peaceable  and  increasing  their  happiness  —  ah,  then 
China  will  join  enthusiastically  in  the  universal  concert. 
.  .  .  But  has  that  conviction  been  arrived  at?  What 
are  the  commercial  importations  into  those  ports  a 
celebrated  treaty  has  made  international?  Firearms, 
We  hoped  for  the  machinery  of  peace,  they  bring  us 
the  machinery  of  war,  and  as  a  specimen  of  modem 
civilising  institutions  we  inaugurate  standing  armies. 
And  they  complain  we  are  mistrustful !  But  firearms 
are  not  the  only  articles  of  prime  necessity  offered  to 
us.  To  tell  the  truth  they  are  nearly  the  only  ones 
whose  utility  has  been  proved  to  us :  the  demonstration 
has  been  perfect.  .  .  .  Ask  a  Chinese  what  he  calls 
the  English:  he  will  tell  you  they  are  the  opium 
merchants.  In  the  same  way  he  will  tell  you  the 
French  are  missionaries.  It  is  under  these  two  aspects 
he  knows  them,  and  it  will  easily  be  understood  that  he 
retains  a  lively  remembrance  of  these  foreigners,  since 
the  former  ruin  his  health  at  the  expense  of  his  purse, 
and  the  latter  upset  his  ideas.  ...  All  the  foreigners 
who  seek  China  have  but  one  end  in  view — ^speculation ; 
and  what  is  extremely  curious,  all  these  speculators 
despise  us  because  we  exhibit  distrust.  .  .  .  ^Our 
enemy,'  says  the  universal  fabulist,  'is  our  master'; 
but  it  is  likewise  the  man  who  makes  a  snatch  at  our 
purse  under  pretext  of  civilisation.  Distrust  ?  why,  we 
can  never  show  enough."  ^ 

In  1865,  or  thereabouts,  we  have  an  instance  of  one 
of  those  straws  which  show  how  the  wind  blows.  **  M. 
de  Mas,  the  SpanisH  Minister,  being  about  to  leave 
Peking,"  went  to  pay  a  farewell  visit  to  Heng-chi,  of 
the  Foreign  Board,  who  had  been  especially  friendly. 
**  After  the  two  old  gentlemen  had  exchanged  banalities 
to  their  hearts'  content,  the  Spaniard,  knowing  that 
Heng-chi  had  a  little  son,  the  child  of  his  old  age,  of 
whom  he  was  inordinately  proud,  thought  it  would  be  a 

^  TAe  Ckinesey  pcdnUd  by  themselves^  1884,  CoL  Tcheng  Ki-Tong 
(trans,  from  the  French  by  James  Millington),  pp.  81-6. 

P 


226         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

very  pretty  compliment  if  he  asked  to  see  the  little  boy, 
who  was  accordingly  produced,  sucking  his  thumb  after 
the  manner  of  his  years.  Him  his  father  ordered  to 
pay  his  respects  to  M.  de  Mas — that  is  to  say,  shake 
his  united  fists  at  him  in  token  of  salutation,  instead  of 
which  the  child  after  long  silence  and  much  urging, 
taking  his  thumb  deliberately  out  of  his  mouth,  roared 
out  'kmei-tBU'  (devils),  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  and  fled. 
Imagine  the  consternation  of  the  two  old  twaddles! 
H^g-chi  was  horrified,  for,  after  all  his  protestations  of 
friendship  for  us,  which  by-the-by  took  nobody  in,  it 
bored  him  not  a  little  that  we  should  find  out  that  his 
child  was  brought  up  in  the  privacy  of  the  harem  to 
look  upon  us  as  devils."  ^ 

In  1868,  the  Peking  Government  asked  advice  from 
its  more  powerful  officers  on  the  foreign  question.  The 
Memorial  of  one  of  them  in  reply — Tseng  Kwo-Fan, 
Viceroy  of  Nanking— fell  into  the  hands  of  foreigners. 
''Tseng  Kwo-Fan,  in  this  document,  assures  the 
advisers  of  the  Emperor  that  the  Chinese  had  suffered 
sorely  from  the  arrival  of  foreigners,  which,  *  though  it 
make  the  unskilful  laugh,  cannot  but  make  the  judicious 
grieve.'  Foreign  trade,  he  says,  is  permitted  only 
because  it  cannot  be  kept  out,  and  our  friendship  is  to 
be  retained  only  because  it  is  less  objectionable  than  our 
enmity."* 

About  the  same  time,  there  appears  to  have  been 
printed  in  Hunan,  and  extensively  circulated  elsewhere, 
"An  appeal  to  the  Hunan  Province,"  which  reads 
thus :—" Strangers  are  invading  all  around;  people's 
hearts  are  provoked  at  it  Just  speak  of  those  rebellious 
and  barbarous  Englishmen :  their  savage  country  is  the 
sea-shore,  the  head  of  their  government  is  a  woman, 
and  their  original  race  is  half  man  half  brute.  They  are 
those  whom  our  books  call  naked  warms  and  tnen^fisk. 

"  Th4  Attack^  at  Peking^  1900^  A.  B.  Freeman-Mitford,  C.B., 
pp.  168-9. 

*  The  Tientsin  Massacre^  1870,  George  Thin,  M.D.,  p.  44. 


"EXPEBIENTIA  DOCET"  227 

Whereforei  we  all,  literati,  husbandmen,  tradesmen, 
and  so  forth,  let  us  draw  the  sword  against  the  common 
enemy;  whoever  does  not  come  with  us  is  a  traitor, 
shamefully  sold  to  foreigners."  ^ 

Mr  Thomson,  who  was  in  China  about  1 87 1 ,  remarks 
that  'Miterary  graduates,  when  selected  for  the  Imperial 
Service,  are  at  once  cut  adrift  from  the  people,  and  form 
a  caste  by  themselves,  whose  sole  interest  lies  in  main- 
taining the  ancient  policy  of  the  Government,  to  the 
exclusion  of  such  measures  of  progress  and  rdbrm  as 
would  bring  the  country  abreast  of  the  times,  and  foster 
the  permanent  interest  of  the  community  from  which 
they  sprang."  * 

Concerning  these  same  literaH,  after  observing 
that  they  are  to  be  pitied  rather  than  censured,  Mr 
Holcombe  continues  : — **  Patriotic  or  selfish,  wise  or 
absurd  in  their  opposition  to  modern  ways  and  ideas, 
the  entire  history  of  the  foreign  relations  with  the 
Chinese  Empire  exhibits  the  literati  as  an  intensely 
hostile  and  dangerous  force.  Every  absurd  story, 
calculated  to  arouse  popular  fear  and  hatred  against 
foreigners,  has  either  originated  with,  or  been  counten- 
anced by,  them.  The  Tientsin  massacre  of  1870  was 
emphatically  their  work.  And  the  ultimate  responsi- 
bility for  every  popular  uprising,  peaceful  or  violent, 
against  foreigners,  or  the  modern  ways  of  life  which  they 
represent,  must  be  laid  upon  the  shoulders  of  the 
literati.  They  utterly  thwarted  the  efforts  of  the 
Emperor  in  1886  to  broaden  the  range  of  study  and  the 
civil  service  examination  by  the  addition  of  mathe- 
matical subjects.  For  more  than  thirty  years  they 
have  practically  boycotted  the  University  of  Peking, 
where  languages,  mathematics,  and  modern  science 
have  been  taught  in  coiyunction  with  the  Confucian 
course.    And  the  literati,  rather  than  the  Empress- 

*  The  Tientsin  Massacre,  p.  73. 

>  Through  China  with  a  Camera^  1898,  John  Thomson,  F.R.G.S., 
p.  3- 


228  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Dowag^er,  must  be  held  accountable  for  the  recent  fiasco 
in  the  plans  of  the  Emperor  for  reform.  Those  plans, 
crude,  ill-advised,  and  far  too  radical  for  the  intense 
conservatism  of  the  Chinese,  might  still  have  met  with 
some  poor  measure  of  success,  and  have  proved  the 
stepping-stones  to  better  thinsrs.  But  the  bitter 
hostility  of  the  literati  and  the  official  class  encouraged 
the  ambition  of  the  Empress- Dowager.  Utter  failure, 
and  the  practical  dethronement  of  Kuang-Hsu,  were 
the  result."^ 

"  Yet  to  say  that  the  literati ds^  hostile  to  foreigners," 
remarks  Captain  Brinkley,  "is  only  another  way  of 
saying  that  the  educated  class  is  hostile.  .  .  .  But  if 
educated  Chinese  are  anti-foreign,  is  that  to  be  attri- 
buted to  innate  disposition  or  to  practical  experience.^ 
Would  the  educated  classes  of  any  nation  be  pro-foreign 
under  similar  circumstances  ?  "  ^ 

The  same  authority  also  tells  us  that  "on  almost 
every  occasion  of  charitable  effort,  missionaries — Pro- 
testant and  Roman  Catholic  alike — were  the  prime 
movers  and  ultimate  distributors.  Notably  was  that  the 
case  in  the  great  famine  of  1878.  It  may  be  supposed 
that,  coming  with  such  a  passport,  they  would  have  been 
hospitably  and  joyfully  received.  On  the  contrary, 
suspicion,  distrust,  and  even  open  hostility,  dogged  their 
footsteps  at  the  outset.  For  a  moment  it  seemed  that 
nothing  would  be  possible,  except  to  scatter  broadcast 
the  gifts  of  which  they  were  the  bearers,  and  fly  before 
this  antipathy.  They  persevered,  however,  and  had  the 
satisfaction  of  completely  overcoming  all  prejudices  in 
the  end.  But  the  fact,  that  prejudice  had  existed,  re- 
tained its  significance.  In  mediaeval  times,  foreigners 
might  have  visited  these  provinces,  and  did  visit  them, 
without  provoking  any  display  of  animosity.  Now,  in 
the  last  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century,  they  found 
ill  will  everywhere.     There  was  not,  on  this  occasion, 

^  The  Real  Chinese  QuesHan^  1901,  Chester  Holcombe,  pp.  87-8. 
China^  etc.^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  vol.  xL,  pp.  220-1. 


"EXPERIENTIA  DOCET"  229 

any  question  of  religious  propagandism.  What  pro- 
voked the  sentiment  of  the  provincial  Chinese,  men 
living  far  inland  beyond  the  reach  of  exasperating 
influences,  was  the  sight  of  the  foreigner,  qua  foreigner. 
Only  at  the  open  ports,  where  commerce  served  as  a 
lubricator,  did  contact  fail  to  produce  friction."^ 

In  his  report  on  the  trade  of  Che-foo  for  1877, 
Acting-Consul  Jamieson  notes  that,  in  the  preceding 
year,  over  ;^i  0,000  was  subscribed  by  foreigners  in 
China  and  Japan  towards  relieving  the  distress  caused 
by  the  famine  in  Shantung  and  Shansi ;  and  that  ''the 
total  to  be  dispensed  this  year  will  be  double,  perhaps 
treble,  what  it  was  last  year.  ...  It  is  often  asked," 
continues  Mr  Jamieson,  "  are  the  Chinese  grateful  ?  Do 
they  appreciate  our  voluntary  kindness  ?  With  regard 
to  the  better  classes,  the  literati  and  the  lower  mandarins, 
I  think  it  is  very  doubtful.  They  would  rather  see  us 
and  our  charity  out  of  the  country  altogether.  But  with 
r^^rd  to  the  recipients  and  their  associates,  the  poor 
labouring  class,  there  can  be  no  doubt."  * 

In  1884,  Mrs  Williamson  tells  us  that  *'a  Chinaman 
is  not  at  all  times  anxious  to  claim  acquaintance  with  a 
foreigner.  Not  unfrequently  it  brings  down  upon  him 
many  petty  annoyances  from  his  neighbours.  Even 
the  mandarins  sometimes  oppress  these  known  to  be 
friendly  to  the  outside  barbarian."' 

In  1885,  a  Chinese  publication  on  "  The  Indulgent 
Treatment  of  Foreigners "  was  reprinted  in  Shanghai. 
From  it  we  learn  that : — "  Anciently  the  natives  of  China 
made  Treaties  of  Peace,  and  swore  fidelity  before 
Heaven.  In  modern  times  Europeans  make  treaties  for 
purposes  of  trade  according  to  the  Law  of  Nations. 
But  the  English  and  French  first  led  their  armies  to 
fight  China,  and  then  made  treaties  for  the  benefit  of 

'  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  pp.  172-3. 
'  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1878,  p.  39. 

^  Old  Highways  in  ChituL,  1884,  Isabelle  Williamson  (of  Che-foo), 
p.  163. 


230         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

their  countries  and  the  injury  of  China,  without  regard 
to  justice  and  the  Law  of  Nations."^ 

In  1 89 1,  appeared  the  "  Hunan  Tracts  "—distributed 
gratuitously,  mainly  by  pawnbrokers,  who  have  always 
some  official  rank,  and  occupy  semi-official  position.* 
A  perusal  of  these  instructed  the  reader — among  other 
matters — that : — *'  The  Western  kings  have  cast  longing 
eyes  towards  the  Chinese  Empire;  in  order  to  gain 
possession  of  it;  they  have  brought  opium  to  drain 
China  of  its  silver,  and  to  destroy  the  lives  of  the  people. 
But  the  mainstay  of  these  Western  kings  is  the  mis- 
sionaries, whom  they  palm  off  as  doing  good ;  who  win  the 
people  s  affections  by  small  charities,  while  in  their  hearts 
they  are  full  of  fiendish  wickedness.  What  they  desire 
to  obtain  is  traitors  inside  the  camp,  then  they  can  from 
outside  easily  take  the  country."  * 

In  that  year,  Dr  Mutchmore,  an  American  visitor  to 
China,  found  his  own  countrymen  held  in  small 
esteem: — **It  is  a  mistake,"  he  said,  "that  they  [the 
Chinese]  have  any  liking  for  Americans ;  they  make 
no  distinction  in  theii;  favour,  and  would  cut  their  throats 
if  they  dared."* 

"To  learn  what  the  Chinaman  really  thinks  about 
the  foreigner,"  wrote  Mr  Norman  in  1895.  "you  must 
go  to  Peking :  no  other  city  in  China  will  serve  you  so 
well.  And  the  discovery  will  be  far  from  flattering  to 
your  national  pride.  .  .  .  The  '  foreign  devil '  is  despised 
at  sight — not  merely  hated,  but  regarded  with  sincere 
and  profound  contempt.  *  If  the  Tsuitgli  Yamht  were 
abolished,'  said  a  Peking  diplomat  to  me,  'our  lives 

*  The  Indulgent  Treatment  of  Foreigners  (original  date  uncertain). 
Reprint  1885,  Admiral  P'cng  Yii-lin,  and  Wang  Chi-chun  (trans,  by 
"True  Friend  of  China")*  p.  i- 

'  Missionaries  in  CkinOy  1891,  A.  Michie,  Introduction,  p.  vii.  Also, 
China(i),  1892,  p.  73. 

*  The  Hunan  Tracts  of  China,  1892  (trans,  by  "Shocked  Friend  of 
China"),  p.  3. 

«  Moghuly  Mongol^  Mikado,  and  Missionary,  1891,  Samuel  A.  Mutch- 
more, D.D.,  voL  ii.,  p.  123. 


**EXPERIENTIA  DOCET'*  231 

would  not  be  safe  here  for  twenty-four  hours.  The 
people  just  refrain  from  actually  molesting  us,  because 
they  have  learned  that  they  will  be  very  severely 
punished  if  they  do.'  At  home,"  continues  Mr  Norman, 
"  we  cherish  the  belief  that  we  are  welcome  in  China,  that 
the  Chinese  are  pleased  to  learn  of  our  Western  civilisa- 
tion, that  they  are  gladly  and  gradually  assimilating  our 
habits  and  views,  and  that  the  wall  of  prejudice  is  slowly 
breaking  down.  It  would  hardly  be  possible  to  be  more 
grossly  and  painfully  mistaken.  The  people  to  a  man 
detest  and  despise  us.  (I  am  speaking,  of  course,  of  the 
real  Chinese,  not  of  the  anglicised  Chinese  of  Hong- 
Kong  and  elsewhere,  who  are  but  a  drop  in  the  ocean 
of  Celestial  humanity) ;  and  as  for  the  rulers,  it  will 
not  be  far  from  the  truth  to  say  that  the  better 
they  know  us,  the  less  they  like  us."  .  .  .  Even 
"  the  children  run  to  the  door  to  cry  'ktieidzuf  (devil) 
at  you.  They  have  other  indescribable  and  worse 
ways  of  insulting  you  .  .  .  there  are  few  foreigners 
who  have  not  had  some  unpleasant  experience 
or  other.  No  doubt  it  is  sometimes  the  foreigner's 
own  fault,  but  a  life  member  of  the  Aborigines  Pro- 
tection Society  would  fail  to  get  along  smoothly  at 
all  times."  ^ 

Further: — "It  is  the  testimony  of  most  of  the 
foreign  residents,  that  their  treatment  by  the  Chinese 
grows  worse  each  year,  and  that  they  are  less  safe  in 
the  streets.  .  .  .  And  the  Abb6  Favier,  the  finest 
specimen  of  a  priest  I  have  ever  met,  a  beau  sabreur 
of  the  Church,  who  wears  Chinese  dress  and  his  hair 
in  a  queue,  who  speaks  Chinese  fluently,  who  has  even 
been  decorated  with  a  sapphire  button  by  the  Emperor, 
told  me  that  he  had  just  received  the  most  remarkable 
honour  and  recognition  of  his  whole  life  in  China.  He 
met  the  Governor  of  the  city  in  his  official  chair,  and 
the  great  man  positively  bowed  to  him,  to  the  stupe- 

^  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  Easi^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  pp.  198- 
201. 


232         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

faction  of  the  lookers  on.  '//  nia  scUui,  Monsieur — 
comme  fa  / ' "  ^ 

In  an  equally  emphatic  strain  did  Rev.  William 
Ashmore,  D.D.,  of  the  American  Baptist  Mission, 
address  the  readers  of  the  New  York  Examiner: 
"Already  the  revulsion  from  the  old,  kindly  feeling 
towards  America  has  begun.  Now  they  are  learning 
to  hate  us.  It  is  passing  from  mouth  to  mouth,  from 
village  to  village,  from  province  to  province,  from  ruler 
to  ruler,  from  prince  to  prince,  from  beggar  to  beggar, 
until  we  can  contemplate  the  possibility  of  an  epidemic 
of  ill-will  extending  over  a  fourth  part  of  the  whole 
human  race."  * 

**  There  is  one  feature  about  this  place  [Amoy]  that 
is  very  striking,  and  at  the  same  time  exceedingly  dis- 
agreeable, and  that  is  the  open  contempt  which  the 
people  on  the  streets  show  for  the  foreigner,"  says 
Rev.  J.  Macgowan.  "In  spite  of  the  lessons  that  have 
been  taught  this  city  by  English  and  French  soldiers 
in  former  years,  the  hostile  spirit  of  its  population  has 
never  lost  its  bitterness  even  to  the  present  day."  * 

During  his  visit  to  China,  Lord  Charles  Beresford 
"called  upon  His  Excellency  Hu  Yen  Mei,  Director 
of  Railways  and  Governor  of  Peking,  a  most  energetic 
and  enlightened  Mandarin.  ...  He,  however,  was 
very  anxious  as  to  the  immediate  future  of  his  country, 
and  said  he  earnestly  hoped  the  Chinese  Government 
would  shortly  create  an  efficient  army,  as  if  disturbances 
occurred,  European  countries  would  be  very  likely  to 
take  large  slices  of  territory  as  compensation  for  life 
or  losses  which  China  in  her  present  position  was 
powerless  to  prevent."* 

"  While  at  Tientsin  I  had  interviews  with  H.  E.  Yu 
Lu,  the  Viceroy,  and  the  Taotai  Li  .  .  .  they  declared 

1  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  East^  1895,  Henry  Nonnan,  pp. 
279-80.  '  IHd^  pp.  281-2. 

'  Pictures  of  Southern  Chsna^  1897,  Rev.  J.  Macgowan,  p.  304. 
*  The  Break-up  of  Chinoy  1899,  Lord  Charles  Beresford,  p.  2a 


"EXPERIENTIA  DOCET''  233 

they  were  very  anxious  as  to  the  future  of  their  country, 
that  at  present  China  was  helpless,  and  that  all  European 
countries  were  takingr  advantage  of  this  fact,  and  by 
bullying  China  were  making  her  acquiesce  in  schemes 
to  which  she  was  naturally  averse.  They  said  that 
Russia  insisted  on  China  giving  concessions  which  she 
was  helpless  to  refuse,  and  that  Great  Britain  immedi- 
ately demanded  why  such  concessions  were  given,  and 
either  made  China  pay  heavily,  or  give  an  equivalent 
which  China  was  equally  helpless  to  refuse."  ^ 

General  Yuan  Shi-kai  told  his  Lordship  that  "now 
that  China  was  weak,  all  Europe,  while  professing  the 
most  sincere  goodwill  towards  her,  was  seizing  portions 
of  the  Empire  under  cover  of  naval  and  military  demon- 
strations. .  .  .  European  countries  showed  by  their 
actions  that  they  wished  to  split  up  the  Empire,  and 
divide  it  among  themselves."  * 

The  Dowager- Empress  of  China  was  evidently  of 
the  same  opinion  a  year  later.  In  a  Secret  Edict  of 
Her  Majesty  to  the  Viceroys,  issued  21st  November 
1899,  the  following  passage  occurs: — **Our  Empire  is 
now  labouring  under  great  difficulties,  which  are  daily 
becoming  more  serious.  The  various  Powers  cast  upon 
us  looks  of  tiger-like  voracity,  hustling  one  another  in 
their  endeavours  to  be  the  first  to  seize  upon  our  inmost 
territories.  They  think  that  China,  having  neither 
money  nor  troops,  would  never  venture  to  go  to  war 
with  them.  They  fail  to  understand,  however,  that 
there  are  certain  things  to  which  this  Empire  can 
never  consent,  and  that,  if  hardly  pressed  upon,  we 
have  no  alternative  but  to  rely  upon  the  justice  of  our 
cause."* 

Writing  on  the  question  of  the  "  Missionary  Trouble  " 
in  1899,  Mr  Gorst  presents  a  view  much  apt  to  be 
overlooked.    "  One  must  also  recollect  that  the  relations 

*  The  Break-up  of  CMnc^  p.  29.  '  IbicL^  pp.  272-3. 

'  Martyred  Missionaries  of  the  China  Inland  Mission^  1901,  Marshall 
Broomhall,  B.A.,  p.  6. 


234         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  Chinese  have  had  with  the  nations  professing  this 
religrion  can  scarcely  have  convinced  them  of  the  desir- 
ability of  the  new  doctrine.  Commercial  greed,  and 
a  constant  readiness  to  appeal  to  physical  force,  are 
the  principal  characteristics  which  have  been  displayed 
— in  the  eyes,  at  least,  of  the  Chinese — by  the  men 
of  the  West.  We  talk  in  this  country  of  imperial 
interests,  of  the  expansion  of  our  commerce,  and  of  the 
maintenance  of  our  rights ;  but  one  is  sometimes  apt  to 
forget  that  these  high-sounding  phrases  are  expressed  in 
less  exalted  language  by  the  people  who  are  differently 
affected  by  the  acts  which  they  imply.  The  Chinese 
have  hitherto  judged  us  by  our  actions;  and  they 
cannot  forget  that  the  presence  of  the  foreigner  in 
their  country  is  the  result  of  violence,  and  has  been 
brought  about  by  the  repeated  humiliation  of  their 
emperors.  They  see  in  our  persistent  efforts  to  gain 
a  commercial  footing  in  China,  nothing  but  the  lust 
of  gold,  and  a  determination  to  exploit  the  resources 
of  the  country  for  no  one's  benefit  but  our  own.  We 
know  that  in  one  sense  they  are  mistaken.  Our 
merchants  naturally  wish  to  open  up  trade  for  their 
own  benefit ;  but  they  are  well  aware  that  they  can 
only  create  a  profitable  market  in  China  for  their 
goods  by  increasing  the  wealth,  or  purchasing  power, 
of  the  native  consumer.  We  cannot  quarrel  with  the 
Chinese,  however,  for  viewing  our  intentions  as  purely 
one-sided  and  selfish;  for  we  have  given  them  little 
cause  to  think  otherwise."^ 

"The  actions  of  the  European  nations  in  China," 
says  a  Chinese  writer,  "are  naturally  not  seen  in  the 
same  light  by  the  natives  of  the  land  as  they  appear  to 
the  people  of  Europe.  When  one  considers  how  many 
innocent  villages  and  towns  have  been  burned  or  put 
to  the  sword  in  the  different  wars,  reason  for  wonder 
ceases  to  exist  at  the  intense  antipathy  of  the  people 
against  foreigners.  .  .  .  For  the  gifts  to  the  West  in 

'  Ckina^  1899,  Harold  £.  Gorst,  p.  176. 


"  EXPERIENTIA  DOCET ""  235 

the  shape  of  tea,  silk,  and  the  magnetic  compass,  we 
have  so  far  received  in  return  opium,  missionaries,  and 
bombardment."^ 

Moreover : — "  A  good  deal  of  the  ill  feeling  in  the 
Chinese  people  against  foreigners  arises  from  the  utter 
disregard  by  the  framers  of  treaties  for  the  interests 
of  the  natives — the  real  possessors  of  the  Chinese 
Empire."* 

In  conclusion,  one  who  writes  under  the  name  of 
"A  Chinese  Official"  will  sum  up  the  case  for  China. 
**...!  have  never  asserted  that  the  Chinese  are  saints. 
I  have  said,  and  I  still  maintain,  that  if  left  to  them- 
selves, if  the  order  to  which  they  are  accustomed  is 
not  violently  disturbed,  they  are  the  most  peaceful  and 
law-abiding  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  If,  then, 
they  have  broken  loose  from  their  secular  restraints,  if 
for  a  moment  they  have  shown  those  claws  of  the  brute 
which  no  civilisation,  be  it  yours  or  ours,  though  it  may 
sheathe,  will  ever  draw,  the  very  violence  of  the  out- 
break serves  only  to  prove  how  intense  must  have  been 
the  provocation.  Do  you  realise  what  that  provocation 
was.^  I  doubt  it!  Permit  me,  then,  briefly  to  record 
the  facts. 

"  When  first  your  traders  came  to  China  it  was  not 
at  our  invitation;  yet  we  received  them,  if  not  with 
enthusiasm,  at  least  with  tolerance.  So  long  as  they 
were  content  to  observe  our  regulations,  we  were 
willing  to  sanction  their  traffic,  but  always  on  the 
condition  that  it  should  not  disturb  our  social  and 
political  order.  To  this  condition,  in  earlier  days, 
your  countrymen  consented  to  conform,  and  for  many 
years,  in  spite  of  occasional  disputes,  there  was  no 
serious  trouble  between  them  and  us.  The  trouble 
arose  over  a  matter  in  regard  to  which  you  yourselves 
have  hardly  ventured  to  defend  your  own  conduct.  A 
considerable  part  of  your  trade  was  the  trade  in  opium. 

^  TAe  Chinese  Crisis  from  IViMny  1901,  Wen  Ching,  pp.  7,  8. 
*  Ihid^  p.  307. 


236         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

The  use  of  this  drug,  we  observed,  was  destroying  the 
health  and  the  morals  of  our  people,  and  we  therefore 
prohibited  the  trade.  Your  merchants,  however,  evaded 
the  law,  opium  was  smuggfled  in ;  till  at  last  we  were 
driven  to  take  the  matter  into  our  own  hands,  and  to 
seize  and  destroy  the  whole  stock  of  the  forbidden  drugf. 
Your  Government  made  our  action  an  excuse  for  war. 
You  invaded  our  territory,  exacted  an  indemnity,  and 
took  from  us  the  island  of  Hong-Kong.  Was  this  an 
auspicious  beginning.^  Was  it  calculated  to  impress 
us  with  a  sense  of  the  justice  and  fair  play  of  the 
British  nation  ?  Years  went  on ;  a  petty  dispute  about 
the  privileges  of  the  flag — a  dispute  in  which  we  still 
believe  that  we  were  in  the  right — brought  us  once 
more  into  collision  with  you.  You  made  the  un- 
fortunate conflict  an  excuse  for  new  demands.  In 
conjunction  with  the  French  you  occupied  our  capital, 
and  imposed  upon  us  terms  which  you  would  never 
have  dared  to  offer  to  a  European  nation.  We 
submitted  because  we  must;  we  were  not  a  military 
Power.  But  do  you  suppose  our  sense  of  justice  was 
not  outraged  ?  Or  later,  when  every  European  Power 
on  some  pretext  or  other  has  seized  and  retained  some 
part  of  our  territory,  do  you  suppose  because  we  cannot 
resist  that  we  do  not  feel?  To  a  Chinaman,  who 
reviews  the  history  of  our  relations  with  you  during 
the  past  sixty  years  and  more,  must  you  not  naturally 
appear  to  be  little  better  than  robbers  and  pirates? 
True,  such  a  view  is  unduly  harsh,  and  I  do  not  myself 
altogether  share  it.  A  study  of  your  official  documents 
has  convinced  me  that  you  genuinely  believe  that  you 
have  had  on  your  side  a  certain  measure  of  right,  and  I 
am  too  well  aware  of  the  complexities  of  all  human 
affairs  to  deny  that  there  may  be  something  in  your 
point  of  view.  Still,  I  would  ask  you  to  consider  the 
broad  facts  of  the  situation,  dismissing  the  interminable 
controversies  that  arise  on  every  point  of  detail. 
Which  of  us  throughout  has  been  the  aggressor — we 


"EXPERIENTIA  DOCET'^  237 

who,  putting  our  case  at  the  worst,  were  obstinately 
resolved  to  maintain  our  society,  customs,  law,  and 
polity,  against  the  influence  of  an  alien  civilisation,  or' 
you  who,  bent  on  commercial  gains,  were  determined 
at  all  cost  to  force  an  entrance  into  our  territory,  and 
to  introduce  along  with  your  goods  the  leaven  of  your 
culture  and  ideas?  If,  in  the  collision  which  inevitably 
ensued,  we  gave  cause  of  offence,  we  had  at  least  the 
excuse  of  self-preservation.  Our  wrongs,  if  wrongs 
they  were,  were  episodes  in  a  substantial  right;  but 
yours  were  themselves  the  substance  of  your  action. 

"Consider  for  a  moment  the  conditions  you  have 
imposed  on  a  proud  and  ancient  empire,  an  empire 
which  for  centuries  believed  itself  to  be  at  the  head  of 
civilisation.  You  have  compelled  us,  against  our  will, 
to  open  our  ports  to  your  trade ;  you  have  forced  us  to 
permit  the  introduction  of  a  drug  which,  we  believe,  is 
ruining  our  people ;  you  have  exempted  your  subjects 
residing  amongst  us  from  the  operation  of  our  laws ; 
you  have  appropriated  our  coasting  traffic ;  you  claim 
the  traffic  of  our  inland  waters.  Every  attempt  on  our 
part  to  resist  your  demands  has  been  followed  by  new 
claims  and  new  agressions.  You  have  compelled  us 
to  receive  your  missionaries,  and  when  they  by  their 
ignorant  zeal  have  provoked  our  people  to  rise  in  mass 
against  them,  that  again  you  have  made  an  excuse  for 
new  depredations,  till  we,  not  unnaturally,  have  come 
to  believe  that  the  cross  is  the  pioneer  of  the  sword, 
and  that  the  only  use  you  have  for  your  religion  is  to 
use  it  as  a  weapon  of  war.  Conceive  for  a  moment  the 
feelings  of  an  Englishman  subjected  to  similar  treatment ; 
conceive  that  we  had  permanently  occupied  Liverpool, 
Bristol,  Plymouth ;  that  we  had  planted  on  your 
territory  thousands  of  men  whom  we  had  exempted 
from  your  laws ;  that  along  your  coasts  and  navigable 
rivers  our  vessels  were  driving  out  yours ;  that  we  had 
insisted  on  your  admitting  spirits  duty  free  to  the 
manifest  ruin  of  your  population;   and  that  we  had 


238  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

planted  in  ail  your  principal  towns'  agents  to  counteract 
the  teachings  of  your  Church  and  undermine  the  whole 
fabric  of  habitual  belief  on  which  the  stability  of  your 
society  depends.  Would  you  be  so  greatly  surprised, 
would  you  really  be  even  indignant,  if  you  found  one 
day  the  Chinese  Legation  surrounded  by  a  howling 
mob,  and  Confucian  missionaries  everywhere  hunted 
to  death  ?  What  right  have  you  then  to  be  surprised, 
what  right  have  you  to  be  indignant  at  even  the  worst 
that  has  taken  place  in  China?  What  is  there  so 
strange  or  monstrous  in  our  conduct?  A  Legation, 
you  say,  is  sacrosanct  by  the  law  of  nations.  Yes ; 
but  remember  that  it  was  at  the  point  of  the  sword 
that  you  forced  us  to  receive  Embassies,  whose  presence 
we  have  always  regarded  as  a  sign  of  national  humilia- 
tion. But  our  mobs  were  barbarous  and  cruel.  Alas ! 
yes.  And  your  troops?  And  your  troops,  nations  of 
Christendom  ?  Ask  the  once  fertile  land  from  Peking  to 
the  coast ;  ask  the  corpses  of  murdered  men  and  out- 
raged  women  and  children ;  ask  the  innocent  mingled 
indiscriminately  with  the  guilty;  ask  the  Christ,  the 
lover  of  men,  whom  you  profess  to  serve,  to  judge 
between  us  who  rose  in  mad  despair  to  save  our 
country  and  you  who,  avenging  crime  with  crime,  did 
not  pause  to  reflect  that  the  crime  you  avenged  was  the 
fruit  of  your  own  iniquity ! 

"  Well,  it  is  over — over,  at  least,  for  the  moment  I 
do  not  wish  to  dwell  upon  the  past.  Yet  the  lesson  of 
the  past  is  our  only  guide  to  the  policy  of  the  future. 
And  unless  you  of  the  West  will  come  to  realise  the 
truth;  unless  you  will  understand  that  the  events 
which  have  shaken  Europe  are  the  Nemesis  of  a  long 
course  of  injustice  and  oppression;  unless  you  will 
learn  that  the  profound  opposition  between  your 
civilisation  and  ours  gives  no  more  ground  why  you 
should  regard  us  as  barbarians  than  we  you;  unless 
you  will  treat  us  as  a  civilised  Power  and  respect  our 
customs  and  our  laws;  unless  you  will  accord  us  the 


"EXPERIENTIA  DOCET'*  239 

treatment  you  would  accord  to  any  European  nation, 
and  refrain  from  exacting  conditions  you  would  never 
dream  of  imposing  on  any  Western  Power — unless  you 
will  do  this,  there  is  no  hope  of  any  peace  between  us. 
You  have  humiliated  the  proudest  nation  in  the  world ; 
you  have  outraged  the  most  upright  and  just ;  with 
what  results  is  now  abundantly  manifest.  If  ignorance 
was  your  excuse,  let  it  be  your  excuse  no  longer.  Learn 
to  understand  us,  and  in  doing  so,  learn  better  to  under- 
stand yourselves.  To  contribute  to  this  end  has  been 
my  only  object  in  writing  and  publishing  these  letters. 
If  I  have  offended,  I  regret  it ;  but  if  it  is  the  truth  that 
offends,  for  that  I  owe  and  I  offer  no  apology."^ 

^  Letttrsfivm  a  Chinese  Official^  1903,  pp.  67-75  (otherwise,  Letters 
from  John  Chinaman^  1902,  G.  L.  Dickinson). 


CHAPTER  VI 

A  CHINESE  OPINION  ON  THE  CHRISTIAN  RELIGION 

The  foUowingr  is  from  an  article  in  Die  Kaiholischen 
Missionen  of  January  1907.  The  notes  in  brackets  are 
by  the  original  translator. 

What  do  the  leading  circles  in  China  really  think 
of  Christianity  and  the  Christian  missions  in  China? 
To  this  question  we  get  an  answer  through  a  Memorial 
issued  from  high  official  quarters,  which  bears  the  title 
Min  kiao  hsiang  ngan  (Good  relations  between  People 
and  Church).  It  was  composed  in  IQOS*  by  two 
members  of  the  Chinese  Ministry  of  Public  Instruction ; 
and,  by  order  of  the  famous  Viceroy  of  Tche-li,  Yuan- 
shi-k'ai,  was  confidentially  distributed  to  all  the  man- 
darins of  the  province  of  Tche-li,  ostensibly  for  the 
purpose  of  better  enlightening  them  on  the  essence  and 
nature  of  the  Christian  religion,  and  correspondingly 
regulating  their  attitude  towards  it.  Rev.  Fr.  Jansen, 
missionary  in  East  Mongolia,  has,  after  many  exertions, 
succeeded  in  obtaining  a  copy  of  the  Memorial. 

The  paper  contains  37  pages,  and  treats,  in  eight 
chapters,  of  the  relations  between  China  and  the 
Christian  missions. 

I.  The  First  Chapter  opens  with  a  panegyric  on  the 
doctrine  of  Confucius.  This  doctrine,  it  is  said,  is  all 
the  more  admirable,  as  it — in  contradistinction  to  other 
religions — does  not  enjoin  any  faith  in  extraordinary 
things,  such  as  the  existence  of  good  and  bad  spirits. 
Confucius  does  not  dogmatise ;  he  allows  even  doubt 
of,  and  criticism  on,  his  own  views.  Nowhere  else  is 
the  like  found. 

MO 


A  CHINESE  OPINION  ON  CHRISTIAN  RELIGION  241 

The  Buddhist  and  Mohammedan  relisfions,  natural- 
ised in  China,  are  living  side  by  side  in  peace  and 
concord.  [That  the  good  Moslem,  about  thirty  years 
ago,  ravaged  the  province  of  Kan-su  with  fire  and 
sword,  and  massacred  numberless  Buddhists,  seems  to 
be  unknown  to  the  authors.] 

The  religion  introduced  from  Europe  has  quite  a 
different  character.  There,  religious  wars  have  always 
been  the  order  of  the  day,  and  have  cost  the  lives  of 
hundreds  of  thousands.  With  the  arrival  of  the 
Christian  religion  in  China,  these  wars  have  been 
transferred  thither  also. 

Here  follows  a  short  history  of  the  missions.  In  the 
ninth  year  of  the  reign  of  Wan- Li,  of  the  Ming  dynasty 
[1582],  Matthew  Ricci  [S.J.]  is  stated  to  have  come  to 
China.  [The  authors  manifestly  know  nothing  of  the 
Franciscan  mission  during  the  Middle  Ages.]  More 
than  one  of  these  Jesuits  at  the  Court  of  Peking  have 
been  favoured  with  high  honours  by  the  Emperors. 
The  decrees  of  persecution,  which  followed  later  on, 
had  not  for  their  object  to  oppose  [the  Christian]  religion, 
as  such,  but  merely  to  put  a  stop  to  the  continual 
quarrels  between  Pagans  and  Christians.  Under 
pressure  from  foreign  Powers,  notably  France,  the  free 
propagation  and  practice  of  the  Christian  religion  is 
nowadays  granted. 

1 1 .  The  Second  Chapter  is  concerned  with  the  treaties 
concluded  with  foreign  Powers.  These  treaties — in- 
cluding those  that  refer  to  religion — are  stated  to  have 
been  always  detrimental  to  China.  The  articles, 
however,  which  have  reference  to  the  spreading  of  the 
Christian  religion,  have  been  signed  separately,  and 
have  nothing  to  do  with  the  other  stipulations.  The 
Article  of  the  Treaty  concluded  with  France  [i860] 
runs  thus,  they  say  : — 

''The  Catholic  religion  aims  at  urging  all  men 
to  do  good.    All,  therefore,  who  join  it,  shall  enjoy 

Q 


242         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

protection  and  safety  for  their  persons  and  property. 
They  may,  without  restraint,  meet  for  their  religious 
practices,  prayers,  etc.  The  missionaries  who,  with 
friendly  intention,  travel  through  the  country,  shall 
everywhere  find  effectual  protection  on  the  part  of 
the  local  authorities.  Chinese  who  wish  to  con- 
form to  this  religion,  and  keep  its  precepts, 
must  not  be  molested  or  persecuted  on  that 
account.  In  conformity  with  this,  all  that  has 
formerly  been  written  and  prescribed  to  hinder  the 
religion  of  the  Lord  of  the  Heavens  shall  be 
cancelled  in  all  the  provinces." 

[This  final  verb  "cancelled"  was  rendered  in  the 
Chinese  text  by  kuan  mien  (pardoned,  amnestied), 
whereas  in  the  official  French  text  the  word  aboli 
(abolished)  was  used.  Some  years  later,  the  French 
Legation  demanded  that,  instead  of  Hiian  mien,  the 
word  ko't'schu  (abolished)  should  be  inserted.  In  spite 
of  this,  the  pamphlet  gives  the  original  text]. 

The  protection  promised  in  the  Treaty  relates  only 
to  the  missionaries — so  the  authors  of  the  pamphlet 
declare.  Chinese  Christians  remain,  just  the  same 
as  before,  subjects  of  the  Empire,  and  cannot  lay  claim 
to  special  protection.  As  regards  taxes  and  duties, 
Christians  stand  on  a  par  with  Heathens :  yet  Chris- 
tians need  not  pay  the  special  taxes  for  the  Pagan 
ceremonies.  Besides,  neither  are  the  Pagans  bound  to 
do  this  last,  as  these  ceremonies  are  quite  useless.  [!] 

The  chapter  closes  with  the  assertion  that  the 
Christians  have  oppressed  the  Heathens,  thereby 
rousing  the  hatred  of  the  same,  and  thus  they  them- 
selves [the  Christians]  caused  the  burning  of  their 
churches  and  the  massacre  of  their  missionaries.  [?] 

III.  The  Third  Chapter  suggests  how  Europeans, 
especially  missionaries,  ought  to  be  treated : — 

"  We  must  show  ourselves  polite  to  them,  since 
the  Treaties  order   this.     We  should,  therefore, 


A  CHINESE  OPINION  ON  CHRISTIAN  RELIGION  243 

let  them  preach  freely,  since  we  cannot  hinder 
it ;  they,  on  their  part,  however,  must  not  interfere 
with  other  people's  affairs.  Furthermore,  we  must 
not  forget  that  they  are  our  guests ;  and  that,  if 
treated  as  such,  get  a  good  opinion  of  us,  and 
will,  in  their  turn,  treat  us  civilly  too." 

"We  must  not  oppress,  yet  just  as  little, 
fear,  and,  least  of  all,  fawn  upon,  them;  we 
ought  simply  to  abide  by  the  conditions  of  the 
Treaties,  and  the  rules  of  friendship.  In  former 
times  we  have  repeatedly  ill-treated  Europeans. 
That  was  unjust,  and  we  acted,  in  those  cases,  just 
like  one  who  receives  a  distinguished  guest  into  his 
house  without  offering  him  a  cup  of  tea.  This 
manner  of  proceeding  must  be  changed." 

IV.  The  Fourth  Chapter  enters  into  the  relations 
between  Heathens  and  Christians.  Here,  the  Heathens 
are  described  as  Ping-min  (ordinary  subjects),  and  the 
Christians  as  Kiao-ntin  (subjects  of  the  Church).  In 
this  a  genuine  Chinese  trick  is  concealed.  For,  Ping^ 
though,  in  the  first  place,  it  means  "ordinary,"  yet 
has  also  the  signification  of  "peaceable."  By  this 
antithesis,  the  Christians  are  stigmatised  as  the  real 
disturbers  of  the  peace. 

Here,  once  more,  the  pamphlet  reverts  to  the  attitude 
of  the  authorities,  especially  towards  the  missionaries : — 

"It  is  true  we  have  often  ill-treated  the  mission- 
aries* One  of  the  principal  causes  of  this  lies  in  the 
fact  that  their  exterior,  language,  manners  and 
customs,  differ  widely  from  ours.  Moreover, 
the  chiefs  of  the  Christians  are  foreigners,  you 
understand.  Hence  it  is  that,  when  a  Chinese 
wishes  to  become  a  Christian,  his  fellow-citizens 
try  to  dissuade  him  from  doing  so,  because  they 
do  not  like  his  becoming  a  foreigner.  The 
Christian,  on  his  part,  considers  himself  as  a 
foreigner  too,  and,  as  such,  wishes  to  let  his  adver* 


244         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

saries  feel  the  power  of  which  he  is  thus  possessed. 
So  Christians  and  Heathens  are  opposed  to  one 
another  like  fire  and  water." 

"At  the  root  of  this  attitude  lies  a  great  error ; 
for,  the  acceptance  of  a  religion  is  in  exactly  the 
same  case  as  the  acceptance  of  either  a  vegetable 
or  a  meat  diet.  It  depends  entirely  on  individual 
taste  ;  why  therefore  find  fault  with  it.^ 

"  Another  cause  of  enmity  are  the  duties  and 
taxes,  which  both  parties  alike  must  pay,  for 
the  common  good.  A  difficulty,  however,  arises 
with  regard  to  the  special  expenses  of  Pagan 
ceremonies.  But  Christians  cannot  be  forced  to 
contribute  to  these ;  it  would  mean  obliging  them 
to  transgress  their  religious  precepts." 

"  Furthermore,  there  are  Christians  who  make 
use  of  the  influence  of  Europeans  in  order  to 
oppress  their  Heathen  fellow-citizens.  The  latter, 
naturally,  repay  them  in  their  own  coin.  Such 
Christians,  however,  reflect  little  credit  on  their 
religion,  for  Jesus  says: — 'Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbour  as  thyself.'  They  should  be  denounced, 
both  to  the  mandarin  and  their  priest.  Still,  one 
ought  to  guard  against  charging  the  Church,  as 
such,  with  the  misdeeds  of  individuals  ;  for,  so  one 
excites  hatred  against  the  Church,  and  conjures 
up  those  complications  in  which  China  can  only 
be  the  loser.  For,  just  as  the  murderers,  so  also 
the  murdered,  are  Chinese;  while  it  is  our  own 
country  which  has  to  pay  the  indemnities  after 
such  massacres." 

V.  The  Fifth  Chapter  enlarges  upon  the  origin  and 
propagation  of  the  Christian  religion.  Here  it  is 
evident  that  the  authors,  in  stating  their  case,  depend 
exclusively  on  Protestant  sources.  First  come  facts 
about  the  life  of  Jesus.  Then  the  Greek  Schism  and 
the  Reformation  are  briefly  touched  upon,  with  all  the 


A  CHINESE  OPINION  ON  CHRISTIAN  RELIGION  245 

stock  accusations  against  the  pre-Reformation  Church. 
Finally,  the  loss  of  Temporal  Power  of  the  Pope  is 
emphasised — ^all  this  in  langfuage  elsewhere  employed  by 
fanatical  Protestants.  A  disjession  follows  on  the 
Boxer  Rising  which,  indeed,  is  condemned,  but,  in  the 
end,  placed  to  the  account  of  bad  Christians,  although 
the  authors,  by  all  sorts  of  fine  words,  endeavour  to 
keep  up  the  appearance  of  fair-mindedness. 

VI.  The  Sixth  Chapter  endeavours  to  give  a 
description  of  the  Christian  religion.  It  is  couched  in 
such  wise  that  the  contradiction  between  precept  and 
practice  on  the  part  of  Christians  stands  out  in  the 
boldest  possible  relief. 

To  this  end,  the  writers  select  from  the  Gospel 
some  of  its  most  beautiful  doctrines.  The  command 
to  love  one's  neighbour  as  oneself  is  spoken  highly  of; 
likewise  Christ's  injunction  to  forgive  until  seventy 
times  seven;  to  rejoice  if  reviled  and  persecuted;  to 
do  good  to  one's  enemies ;  and  to  offer  the  left  cheek 
if  struck  on  the  right : — 

*'Yet,"  so  the  Memorial  continues,  "do  those 
Christians,  then,  act  up  to  these  instructions,  who 
make  loud  complaint  about  trifles,  or  who  make 
use  of  their  title  of  Christians  to  oppress  the 
Heathens?  Is  not  this  acting  directly  contrary 
to  the  teaching  of  Jesus  ?  " 

Instead  of  for  ever  carrying  on  lawsuits  for  the  sake 
of  temporal  advantage,  the  Christians — we  read  in  the 
pamphlet — should  pay  heed  to  the  advice  of  Christ 
to  the  young  man,  viz.,  to  sell  everything,  give  to 
the  poor  and  follow  Him. 

The  chapter  winds  up  with  the  protestation : — 

"  If  we  here  expose  the  faults  of  the  Christians, 
this  does  not  arise  from  hatred  or  bad  intention ; 
we  only  establish  the  facts." 

Still,  it  is  certain  that,  whoever  reads  this  chapter, 
will  get   a   very   bad   impression   of   the  Christians, 


246         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

The   whole   is  written  with   that  caustic  sarcasm  of 
which  the  Chinese  have  such  a  thorougfh  mastery. 

VII.  The  Seventh  Chapter  is  devoted  to  the  litigation 
which  is  carried  on  re  the  missions  and  Christians  : — 

'*The  greatest  troubles,"  it  is  stated,  "which 
China  has  had  for  the  last  ten  years  are  these  law- 
suits. They  have  cost  numerous  people  their  lives, 
and  ourselves  heavy  fines,  and  even  portions  of  our 
territory.  The  other  religions  have  never  caused 
us  such  embarrassments.  Neither  did  the  Catholic 
religion  do  so,  until  the  end  of  the  Ming  dynasty 
[z.^.,  in  the  first  period  of  the  Catholic  religion,  from 
1583  to  1644].  But  nowadays  it  is  not  a  fingers 
breadth  behind  the  others." 

In  proof  of  the  foregoing  assertions,  some  of  the 
complications  between  the  Chinese  Government  and 
foreign  Powers,  with  their  awkward  consequences,  are  in- 
stanced :  the  indemnities  after  the  massacre  of  Tientsin 
in  1870 ;  the  affair  in  South  Shan-Tung,  with  the  cession 
of  Kiau-Tchau  to  Germany — because  of  the  murder  of 
two  missionaries — following  close  in  its  train;  lastly 
the  indemnity  paid  after  the  Boxer  Rising. 

VIII.  The  Eighth  Chapter  glances  at  the  state  of 
religion  in  other  countries : — 

"In  Europe  and  America  religious  toleration 
prevails.  The  European  Governments  withdrew 
from  the  tutelage  of  the  Church  in  the  eighteenth 
century.  To-day,  both  have  their  own  separate 
sphere  of  action,  in  such  wise,  however,  that  a 
Christian,  by  membership  of  the  Church,  does  not 
cease  to  be  a  citizen  of  his  own  country.  The 
number  of  Christians  who  are  devoted  to  their 
native  land  is  very  great." 

As  examples,  Cavour  and  Mazzini  [!]  are  cited. 
"In  Japan,  the  Christian  religion  was,  before  the 
present  order  of  things,  proscribed  still  more 
severely    than    in    our    own    country.      To-day, 


A  CHINESE  OPINION  ON  CHRISTIAN  RELIGION  247 

complete  reliffious  freedom  is  accorded  there.  The 
Japanese,  who  is  so  proud  of  his  country,  does  not 
lose  his  affection  for  it  by  the  fact  that  he  professes 
a  religion  which  indeed  enjoins  this  love. 

"  Among  Chinese  Christians  also,  thereare,  doubt- 
less, many  who  understand  this  ;  still,  some  evidently 
do  not.  And  this  is  unfortunate  since — our  country 
being  very  weak  compared  to  her  opponents — we 
must,  even  if  united  like  children  of  a  family,  be  pre- 
pared for  possible  oppression.  But,  to  what  misery 
do  we  expose  ourselves,  if  we  live  in  discord  ?  " 

"  These  are,  in  brief  outline,"  continues  Die  Katho- 
lischen  Mtssianen,  *'the  contents  of  this — in  more  than 
one  respect — remarkable  Memorial.  With  all  its  exag- 
gerations, inaccuracies,  and  distorted  views,  which  are, 
indeed,  easily  understood,  a  certain  striving  for  objective 
judgment  must,  on  the  whole,  be  acknowledged.  It 
would  indeed  mean  progress,  if  the  Chinese  authorities, 
in  their  attitude  towards  the  Christian  religion,  would 
but  substitute  a  little  political  moderation,  such  as  here 
recommended,  for  open  hatred  or  treacherous  malice. 

At  the  same  time,  the  Memorial  shows  clearly  that 
the  deepest  cause  of  the  aversion  to  Christianity  is  not 
the  religion,  as  such,  but  its  close  connection  with  the 
so-called  political  Protective  Powers.  That  China 
distrusts  them,  and  returns  hatred  and  aversion  for 
their  violent  encroachment  upon  her  most  intimate 
domestic  affairs,  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  When  she 
sees  that  the  Mission  continually  has  recourse  to  the 
armed  force  of  the  Protective  Power  concerned ;  and 
supported  thereby,  triumphantly  carries  through  its 
lawsuits  and  claims  for  indemnity,  what  wonder  that 
the  distrust  and  aversion  of  the  Chinese  is  extended 
to  the  Church  and  Missions  too ;  and  that  the  latter 
appear  to  them  as  a  thorn  in  the  flesh  ? 

*'  In  the  eyes  of  many  Chinese,"  the  Protestant 
George  B.  Smyth,  Director  of  the  Anglo-Chinese 


248  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

CoUegie  at  Fu-chau  (Fokien),  justly  writes,  "  the 
whole  missionary  activity  appears  suspicious, 
because  of  the  flagrant  contradiction  between  its 
ostensible  object,  and  the  attitude  of  some  Christian 
Powers  towards  China.  Who  can  wonder  at  that  ? 
One  cannot  gfo  to  a  nation  with  the  Bible  in  one 
hand,  and  the  cudgel  in  the  other,  and  expect  it  to 
receive  both  of  them  cheerfully  "  {North  American 
Review,  1900,  p.  19s). 

Prior  to  this,  the  same  principle  had  already  been 
laid  down  by  a  French  missionary,  P^re  Louvet : — 

"  The  efforts  of  the  missionaries,"  so  he  concludes 
his  exhortation,  "must  therefore  be  directed 
towards  keeping  their  affairs  clear  of  politics.  From 
this  point  of  view,  I,  for  one,  can  only  deplore 
the  intervention  of  the  European  Powers.  No- 
thing more  legitimate,  to  be  sure,  but  also  nothing 
more  dangerous,  and  better  calculated  to  excite  the 
national  pride  of  the  Chinese,  and  the  hatred  of  the 
educated  classes." 

No  doubt  also,  the  consciousness  of  having  the 
political  Protective  Power  behind  them,  makes  many 
missionaries  overlook  certain  delicate  considerations  in 
their  dealings  with  the  native  authorities,  the  neglect 
of  which  considerations  wounds  beyond  measure  the 
Chinese,  who,  in  this  respect,  are  very  sensitive. 

As  an  eminent  expert  in  Chinese  affairs,  P^re  Joseph 
Gonnet,  S.  J.,  strongly  insisted,  decades  ago,  the  modds, 
even  in  this  respect,  must  be  the  missionaries  of  the 
earlier  period,  in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries, 
who  conformed  as  far  as  possible  in  every  way — in 
language,  dress,  manners,  customs,  forms  of  social 
intercourse,  etiquette  —  to  the  peculiarities  of  the 
Chinese,  and  spared  their  national  susceptibilities  with 
punctilious  care."  * 

^  Die  Kaiholischen  Missionen,  January  1907,  pp.  82  sqg. 


CHAPTER  VII 

CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS 

"Toleration  of  Christian  missionaries,  extorted  by 
force  from  China,  placed  Christians  on  a  different 
platform  from  the  other  foreign  religions,  Mohammed- 
anism and  Buddhism,  to  which  China  of  its  own 
notion  extended  complete  toleration.  Christianity  is 
therefore  associated  with  the  humiliation  of  the  Empire, 
a  calamity  which  is  yet  [1891]  fresh  in  the  memory  of 
the  living  generation."  ^ 

But  *'Let  no  one  deceive  himself  by  thinking  the 
opposition  is  mainly  against  Romanists.  The  Chinese 
have  not  yet  [1890]  generally  arrived  at  such  nice 
distinction  in  Christianity,  as  the  difficulties  which 
Protestants,  like  Romanists,  have  in  the  interior,  fully 
show."« 

And  *'the  fact  of  the  T'ai-P'ing  Rebellion  having 
had  its  origin  in  a  religious  movement,  causes  the 
authorities  to  be  jealous  of  any  sect  or  congregation  of 
men  professing  doctrines  at  variance  with  the  recognised 
creeds  of  China."  * 

"Missionaries  of  every  creed,"  says  Mr  Michie, 
" — and  they  are  varied  enough — have  aroused  the 
detestation  of  the  people  of  China  of  all  classes."  The 
people,  he  tells  us,  cannot  be  distinguished  from  the 
literati,  and  called    friendly.      Wherever  missionaries 

1  Missionaries  in  China,  1891,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  5. 
'  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference,  1890,  p.  410. 
*  Wa^  and  Strt^s  from  the  Far  East,  1876,  Frederic    Henry 
Balfour,  p.  23. 


250  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

settle,  they  gain  the  affections  of  many  natives,  but 
these  friendly  natives  lose  caste  among  their  neighbours. 
If  people  did  not  hate  them,  they  could  not  possibly  be 
worked  up.  "  But  the  people  are  always  and  everywhere 
ready  to  rise  at  a  moment's  notice."  When  mobs  arise, 
native  Christians  are  the  first  object  of  attack. 
"  The  hostile  feeling  is  obviously  increasing  in  intensity, 
and  spreading  with  the  spread  of  missionaries  them- 
selves."^ 

Mr  Michie  attempts  to  account  for  the  hostility  to 
missions.  To  the  Scriptural  explanation,  that  it  is 
their  Master  who  is  hated,  he  opposes  the  reminder 
of  the  toleration  extended  to  Mohammedanism  and 
Buddhism.  Nor  will  he  accept  the  plea  of  diabolic 
intervention,  as  the  Chinese  are  tolerant  of  religion  pure 
and  simple.  Hence,  "the  presumption  is  irresistibly 
strong  that  it  is  never  the  religious,  but  some  other 
element  in  the  missionary  propaganda,  that  rouses  the 
passions  of  the  Chinese.  Instead  of  exciting  them  to 
wrath,  indeed,  the  standing  wonder  is,  that  Christianity 
being  what  it  is,  and  the  condition  of  the  average 
Chinese  being  what  it  is,  the  common  people  do  not 
hear  it  gladly  .  .  .  while  waiting  for  such  explanation, 
the  missionaries  must  stand  provisionally  responsible  for 
either  so  misunderstanding  their  message,  or  so  mis- 
managing the  delivery  of  it,  as  to  render  it  virtually 
of  no  effect  over  the  larger  portion  of  their  field  of 
operations.'  ^ 

Proceeding  to  analysis,  Mr  Michie  enumerates  first, 
race-hatred — not  peculiar  to  the  Chinese — "aggravated 
by  those  very  considerations  of  benefits  conferred  which, 
with  the  self-complacency  almost  peculiar  to  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  forms  of  Christianity,  the  missionary  bodies 
expect  to  alleviate  it."  China  is  hospitable  to  those 
who  come  as  guests  and  suitors,  but,  "according  to 
the  working  of  the  human  mind,  the  attainments  of 
which  we  boast,  and  the  superfine  moralities  which  we 
^  Missionaries  in  CMna^  pp.  5-9.  ^  IHd.^  p.  11. 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  251 

profess  with  not  a  little  braying  of  trumpet,  are  the 
things  most  calculated  to  excite  the  hatred,  not 
unmixed  with  fear,  of  the  people  on  whom  we  have 
so  brusquely  intruded."^ 

''  Chinese  officials  and  people  take  no  account  of  the 
varieties  of  missionaries."  The  Catholic  Church  has 
been  associated  with  the  aggressive  policy  of  France ; 
a  Power  which  has  been  suspected  of  cherishing  designs 
against  China,  and  which  has  employed  the  missionaries 
as  political  and  even  military  spies."  ^ 

**  Indiscretions  in  connection  with  hospitals  may  at 
any  time  have  serious  consequences."  These  are 
dismissed  as  not  being  the  causes  of  the  trouble,  ''they 
are  the  occasions."  ' 

"  Indifference  to  the  opinions  of  others,  and  disrespect 
for  their  institutions  are  somewhat  characteristic  of  the 
race  from  which  Protestant  missionaries  mostly  come. 
.  .  .  Constitutionally,  they  seem  to  be  incompetent  for 
anything  but  a  commanding  rdle;  hence  they  are 
scarcely  the  ideal  stuff  of  which  to  make  missionaries 
to  races  which  inherit  adult  civilisations.  (With  un- 
developed races,  the  case  is,  of  course,  wholly 
different.)"* 

''It  was  a  sage,  a  vigorous,  and  a  successful 
missionary,"  says  Mr  Julian  Ralph,  "at  the  head  of 
a  large  school  for  Chinese  children,  who  tried  to 
persuade  me  to  broach  this  most  delicate  subject. 
He  knew  that  I  had  crossed  the  Pacific  with  more 
than  a  hundred  English  and  American  missionaries, 
and  that,  afterwards,  I  had  made  two  or  more  journeys 
into  the  interior,  and  had  met  many  missionaries  and 
questioned  some  very  shrewd  Chinamen  upon  the 
extraordinary  enmity  to  the  missionaries  of  the  highest 
as  well  as  the  humblest  people  of  China. 

"It  was  upon  my  return  to  the  treaty  port  after  a 
second  journey   inland,   that   this    broadminded  mis- 

1  Missumaries  in  China^  pp.  12-13.  '  ^<^^>  P«  '^ 

>  JHd^  p.  22.  «  JHd.,  p.  3& 


252  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

sionary  asked  me  what  I  thoug^ht  of  the  missionaries 
and  their  methods.  I,  at  first,  declined  to  answer  him. 
This  was  because,  in  my  talks  with  other  missionaries 
of  narrower  mental  grasp,  I  quickly  saw  that  my  point 
of  view  was  not  theirs. 

''  Instead  of  argruing,  or  meeting  fact  with  fact,  they 
usually  took  the  sjound  that  whoever  criticised  them 
had  imbibed  the  prejudices  of  the  white  people  in  the 
treaty  ports.  This  was  not  at  all  my  case,  but  it 
appeared  peculiar  that  there  should  be  such  a  prejudice. 
It  also  seemed  that  if  the  missionaries  knew  that  their 
own  fellow  countrymen  found  fault  with  them,  they 
should  inquire  closely  into  the  reason,  and  try  to 
remedy  it.  .  .  .  On  the  ship  bound  for  China  I  was 
struck  by  the  mediocre  mental  character  of  too  many 
of  the  men.  They  were  often  villagrers  and  men  of  the 
narrowest  horizon.  It  was  these  who  declared  what 
they  would  do  and  have  and  would  not  have,  when  they 
reached  their  stations — as  if  the  Christianising  of  an 
ancient,  a  polished,  and  a  highly  cultivated  race  was 
to  be  carried  out  by  a  word  of  command  instead  of  by 
the  most  sage,  deft,  tactful,  and  sympathetic  means. 
'  rU  have  no  convert  who  permits  his  wife  to  cramp  her 
feet,'  said  one,  and  that  fairly  illustrates  the  mental 
attitude  towards  their  work  of  too  many  whom  I  met. 
Small  feet,  concubinage,  even  the  reverent  regard  of  all 
good  Chinamen  for  their  ancestors,  were  to  be  instantly 
discountenanced,  before  the  true  modes  of  life  and 
worship  were  established  in  their  places."^ 

"Through  the  transparent  rob^  of  their  humility," 
pursues  Mr  Michie,  "may  generally  be  traced  the 
imperious  spirit,  impatient  of  opposition  and  delay. 
Missionaries  often  try,  sincerely  enough,  to  live  down 
to  their  people ;  but  to  wear  the  clothes  of  the  poor  and 
eat  their  food  may  be  nearer  to  formal  condescension 
than  to  true  sympathy.  The  one  thing  needful,  the 
entering  freely  into  the  spirit  of  the  people,  is  of 
^  Tie  Glasfffw  Weekly  Record^  8th  September  1900, 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  253 

exceedingly  rare  attainment  Missionaries  talk  much, 
and  very  naturally,  of  the  grood  things  they  offer  to  the 
Chinese,  and  the  sacrifices  they  make  for  them.  But 
gratitude  is  not  awakened  in  that  way,  much  less  love. 
Natives  instinctively  fear  foreigners,  et  dona  ferentes, 
and  the  more  the  gifts  are  pressed  on  their  attention, 
the  more  suspicious  they  naturally  become."^ 

"  Missionaries,"  Mr  Gorst  tells  us,  "are  regarded  in 
a  great  measure  as  the  emissaries  of  foreign  govern- 
ments, and  any  political  influence  which  they  may 
acquire  is  therefore  regarded  with  the  greatest  suspicion 
and  dislike  by  the  Chinese  authorities."* 

The  compilers  of  the  famous  Circular  of  the  Chinese 
Government  of  Qth  February  1871 — which  will  be 
considered  later — noted  that  "trade  had  in  no  degree 
occasioned  differences  between  China  and  the  Powers," 
whereas,  "the  same  could  not  be  said  of  the  missions, 
which  engendered  ever-increasing  abuses."*  Those 
compilers  must  have  been  blessed  with  singularly  short 
memories !  For,  what  had  the  history  of  the  foreign 
relations  of  China  been,  except  a  record  of  continual 
difficulties,  all  having  their  origin  in  trade — Elicit  or 
illicit?  culminating  some  eleven  years  before  in  the 
series  of  "object  lessons,"  thus  graphically  portrayed  by 
Captain  Brinkley : — "The desire  shown  by  the  Chinese 
to  segregate  their  imperial  capital  from  the  disturbances 
that  foreign  intercourse  had  brought,  under  the  conven- 
tions ;  and  to  confine  the  operations  of  foreign  merchants 
to  the  treaty  ports,  was  quoted  at  the  time,  and  is  still 
quoted,  as  evidence  of  political  blindness  and  conserva- 
tive stupidity.  Yet  they  had  Canton  for  object  lesson ; 
Canton,  where  acts  of  war  were  virtually  normal 
incidents;  where  the  city  had  been  twice  bombarded 
during  the  past  two  years,  and  where  the  Viceroy  had 
just  been  seized  and  carried  into  exile  by  a  foreign 

^  Missionaries  in  China^  p.  38. 

>  China,  1899,  Harold  E.  Gorst,  p.  I77* 

'  China,  etc^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  voL  xti.,  p.  14a 


254         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Power.  They  had  Macao  for  object  lesson;  Macao, 
where  foreign  pirates  took  refuge,  and  where  barracoons 
yearly  received  twenty-five  thousand  Chinese  subjects, 
kidnapped,  or  decoyed  by  false  pretences  to  sell  them- 
selves into  a  life  of  exile  and  hardship.  They  had  their 
own  inland  waters  for  object  lesson,  where  sangfuinary 
outrages  were  constantly  committed  by  European 
and  American  adventurers.  And  they  had  Hong- 
Kong  for  object  lesson,  where  pirates  and  smugglers 
had  their  centre  of  organisation,  and  where  territorial 
aggression  on  the  mainland  had  commenced  simultane- 
ously with  the  capture  of  Canton  by  the  Anglo-French 
forces."^ 

H.M.  Minister  in  Peking  seems  also  to  have  been 
sceptical  on  the  subject.  Thus  Mr  Wade  to  Wen 
Siang : — "In  the  opening  of  Your  Excellency's  note, 
you  remark  that  in  trade  there  is  little  to  object  to.  If 
this  be  so,  it  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  so  many 
commercial  questions  have  to  be  referred  from  the 
ports  to  Peking ;  and  that,  even  after  reference,  when 
settlement  is  obtained  at  all,  months,  if  not  years, 
must  first  be  allowed  to  elapse.  Foreign  govern- 
ments will  be  by  no  means  disposed  to  admit  that 
our  commercial  relations  are  all  that  we  could 
desire."  * 

But  the  compilers  of  the  Circular  "did  not  note," 
continues  Captain  Brinkley,  "a  significant  fact  which 
can  scarcely  fail  to  occur  to  the  reader,  namely,  that  in 
the  pre-convention  days — days  prior  to  the  French 
protectorate  of  the  Roman  Catholic  missions,  and  to 
the  residence  of  religious  propagandists  in  the  interior 
under  extra-territorial  conditions — there  had  been  no 
purely  popular  demonstrations  of  murderous  animosity 
against  Christians.  Official  persecutions  there  had 
been,  indeed;  but  the  people  of  their  own  motion 
showed  no  disposition  to  resort  to  acts  of  violence. 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  p.  15. 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (iX  1872,  p.  17. 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  255 

That  is  very  striking,  especially  as  regards  the  time 
when  Christian  propagandists,  being  proscribed  by 
the  authorities,  were  obliged  to  carry  on  their  labours 
secretly,  and  could  not  count  on  official  protection  or 
redress  against  any  outrage  on  the  part  of  the  people. 
When  the  first  passports  for  missionaries  were  signed 
by  Baron  Gros  in  i860,  twenty-eight  of  them  bore  the 
names  of  propagandists  living  secretly  yet  safely  in 
the  provinces.  That  marked  difference  between  the 
temper  of  the  populace  towards  Christian  propagandism 
in  pre-convention  and  post-convention  days,  seems  to 
show  clearly  that  the  animosity  of  which  Christian 
preachers  and  their  flocks  are  now  so  often  the  victims, 
is  provoked,  not  by  Christianity  itself,  but  by  changed 
methods  of  propagandism,  namely,  the  methods  of 
extra-territoriality."  ^ 

As  regards  the  French  Protectorate,  Sir  Rutherford 
Alcock  assures  us  that,  "  French  interference  between 
the  Chinese  authorities  and  the  subjects  of  the 
Emperors  of  China  has  never  had  any  treaty 
warrant,  or  justification  by  the  law  of  nations.  .  .  . 
China  has  the  remedy  in  her  own  hands,  to  a  certain 
extent,  by  refusing  to  admit  the  pretension."* 

In  1885,  Mr  J.  G.  Dunn,  an  English  Catholic,  was  sent 
to  Rome  on  a  secret  errand :  first,  to  effect  the  removal 
of  the  Catholic  Cathedral  in  Peking — concerning  which, 
presently — ^secondly,  to  induce  the  Holy  See  to  appoint 
a  Nuncio  or  Apostolic  Delegate  to  China  who  should 
represent  all  Catholic  Missions.  [The  Peking  Adminis- 
tration probably  recognised  the  desirability  of  dealing, 
for  once,  with  a  Power  which  possessed  no  gunboats.] 
Mgr.  Agliardi  was  nominated,  but  before  anything 
could  be  done,  the  French  Government  compelled  the 
cancelling  of  the  appointment  by  threatening  to 
terminate    the    Concordat,   withdraw   the   subvention 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  pp.  140-1. 

*  **  France,  China,  and  the  Vatican  "  {JNimUtnth  Century^  November 
1886),  p.  617. 


256         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

to     the    Church     in    France,    and     sequestrate     its 
ministers.* 

''The  French  hostilities  of  1883,  and  the  use  made 
of  their  native  Christians  in  Tonquin  and  elsewhere 
by  the  Government  of  the  Republic,  had  some  effect," 
we  learn  from  Professor  Parker,  "in  concentrating 
upon  the  Roman  Catholics  in  China  most  of  the  odium, 
which  had  been  formerly  shared  in  equal  measure  by 
Protestants."  ^ 

Mr  Michie  quotes  from  a  native  newspaper  of 
October  1886.  "Nothing  is  better  calculated  to 
quicken  the  apprehension  of  the  Government  on  this 
point,  than  the  extraordinary  excitement  of  the  French 
Government,  which  insists  on  protecting  the  Christians 
in  China,  whether  they  desire  this  protection  or 
not.  ...  It  is  rather  suspicious  that  the  French 
Government,  the  greatest  enemy  of  Christianity,  which 
is  constantly  oppressing  the  priests  and  confiscating 
their  property,  should  be  so  intensely  desirous  of 
protecting  Christians  in  China,  where  this  protection 
is  not  required.  .  .  .  The  missionaries  have  among 
them  men  of  great  learning  and  much  skill  in  sciences, 
which  the  Emperor  Kangshi — who  must  always  stand 
as  a  model  for  Chinese  rulers — knew  very  well  how  to 
utilise.  The  present  generation  possesses  men  no  less 
capable  of  rendering  good  services  to  China,  and  there 
would  be  no  reason  for  not  using  them  if  the  suspicion 
of  their  being  agents  of  the  French  Government  were 
once  cleared  away."  * 

On  the  Protestant  side  of  the  question,  it  may  be, 
that  the  humorous  remark  of  the  President  of  St 
John's  College,  Shanghai,  affords  some  explanation 
too.     "It  is  sometimes  jocularly  said  that,  in  former 

^  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  voL  ii.,  pp.  342-7. 
^  China  and  Religion^  1905,  Professor  Edward  Harper  Parker,  pp. 

224-5. 

'  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  voL  it.,  pp.  348- 

SI- 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  257 

days,  missionary  work  was  conducted  in  the  spirit  of 
Henry  Martyn,  but  that  in  these  present  times  it  is 
more  often  attempted  in  the  spirit  of  the  Martinu 
Henri'' ^  Perhaps  this  may  explain  the  fact  that  the 
invented  Chinese  character  for  "rifle"  also  means 
"coming  happiness. "- 

On  7th  May  1907,  H.  E.  Taotai  Ton? — repre- 
senting H.  E.  Tuan  Fang,  Viceroy  of  the  Liang-Kiang 
Provinces — ^addressed  the  China  Centenary  Missionary 
Conference  at  Shanghai,  to  the  following  effect: — 
"The  history  of  Protestant  missionary  effort  in  China 
had  been  chequered,  as  all  ethical  movements  must 
be.  Discipline  was  necessary  to  the  sustentation  of 
great  ideas,  the  efficiency  of  the  organisations  repre- 
sented at  the  Conference  demonstrated  that  truism. 
Protestant  missionaries  were  actuated  by  the  great 
idea  of  doing  good,  and  he  believed  they  had  met 
with  considerable  success.  Still,  they  had  not  a 
monopoly  of  the  idea,  which  was  the  common  posses- 
sion of  the  world's  great  family.  The  general  tendency 
of  mankind  was  towards  good  rather  than  towards  evil. 
As  to  the  quality  and  nature  of  the  progress  made, 
there  must  necessarily  be  controversy,  but  difference 
in  ideas  should  not,  even  in  religious  matters,  exclude 
charity  and  toleration.  The  one  method  of  which 
every  impartial  and  thinking  man  disapproved  was 
the  employment  of  force.  To  the  Chinese,  as  well  as 
to  the  non-partisan  foreigner,  the  outstanding  fact  in 
connection  with  missionary  effort  was  the  too  great 
dependence  on  the  arm  of  the  flesh,  rather  than  on 
the  arm  of  the  Lord.  To  su£fer  injustice  uncom- 
plainingly was  more  Christian  than  to  exact  treaty 
rights;  to  suffer  injury  than  to  claim  pecuniary  in- 
demnity; to  pardon  the  offender  than  to  demand 
chastisement.  Until  convincing  evidence  was  given  the 
Chinese  people  that  methods  pursued  in  the  i>ast  would 

1  T^  Outbreak  in  China^  1900,  Rev.  F.  L.  Hawks-Pott,  D.D.,  p.  103. 
'  Records  of  Shanghai  Coftferefice^  1890^  p.  542. 

R 


258  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

not  obtain  again,  an  overwhelmingf  negative  influence 
must  be  felt  on  missionary  efforts.  Other  factors 
militating  against  the  achievement  of  missionary  ideals 
were  the  lack  of  social  intercourse  between  Chinese 
and  foreigners,  and  the  assumption  of  superiority  by 
the  latter.  WTiy  should  the  room  in  which  the  Con- 
ference had  met  belong  to  the  'Chinese'  Y.M.C.A. ? 
Why  should  not  the  word  'Chinese'  be  removed? 
Again,  missionaries  were  often  deficient  in  knowledge 
of  Chinese  classics,  and  so  appeared  illiterate  to  those 
they  came  to  teach;  greater  study  would  emphasise 
the  facts  that  neither  Confucian  nor  ancestor  worship 
was  considered  by  the  Chinese  as  worship  in  the 
Western  sense  of  the  word.  A  proper  consideration 
of  the  religious  susceptibilities  of  the  Chinese  people 
would  conduce  not  only  to  the  creation  and  mainten- 
ance of  good  relations  between  the  missionary  and 
authorities,  but  would  enable  the  missionary  to  assist 
China,  and  China  to  assist  the  missionary.''  ^ 

Concerning  the  riots  of  1 891,  we  find  the  Marquis 
of  Salisbury  writing  to  Sir  J.  Walsham : — "  In  answer 
to  questions  put  to  him  by  Sir  P.  Currie,  he  [the 
Chinese  Minister  in  London]  said  that  there  had  not 
been  for  many  years  such  an  anti-foreign  outbreak, 
but  he  did  not  attribute  it  to  any  widespread  feeling 
against  foreigners,  but  to  the  machinations  of  the 
secret  societies  existing  among  the  disbanded  soldiery, 
the  object  of  which  was  to  stir  up  trouble  against  the 
government."  * 

In  support  of  this  view,  Mr  Gundry  remarks: — 
"What  is  perhaps  stronger  and  less  interested  evidence 
is,  that  the  Viceroy  of  Nanking  memorialised,  asking 
for  increased  powers  to  punish  the  culprits,  and  that 
an  active  crusade  has  ever  since  been  carried  on  against 
the  society  alleged  to  be  concerned."  • 

*  The  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907,  North  China  Daily 
News  Office,  p.  45.  '  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (3),  1891,  p.  16. 

'  China  Present  and  Past^  1895,  ^^  S.  Gundry,  p.  221. 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  259 

But,  whoever  stirred  it  up,  there  is  no  question  as 
to  the  feeling  of  the  rioters,  if  deeds  are  any  criterion. 
**  Now  that  the  excitement  has  cooled  considerably,  I 
have  been  able  to  gfo  to  examine  the  various  ruined 
compounds,"  wrote  Mr  Consul  Everard,  of  Ichang,  on 
8th  September  1891.  "What  struck  me  particularly 
was  the  intense  hatred  of  everything  of  a  foreign  origin 
which  is  everjrwhere  evinced.  The  rioters  did  not  so 
much  carry  off  as  smash  into  ten  thousand  pieces  what- 
ever they  could  lay  their  hands  on  of  a  breakable 
nature.  They  cut  down  the  trees  in  the  gardens,  tore 
up  the  flowers  and  shrubs,  smashed  all  the  flower-pots, 
scattered  the  contents  of  tinned  stores,  and  in  fact 
behaved  like  the  wildest  savages."^ 

That  the  Chinese  Government — evidently  aware 
that  the  Catholic  Church  is  not  regarded  with  too 
much  favour  in  England — is  not  above  making  a 
point,  if  possible,  by  playing  on  British  prejudices, 
appears  plain.  ''The  Chinese  Minister  pointed  out 
that  the  riots  were  directed  against  Roman  Catholic 
missions,  and  not  against  Protestant  missions,  who  did 
not  provoke  the  same  ill-will  in  China.  He  believed  we 
had  also  found  Roman  Catholic  priests  very  trouble- 
some at  times.  England  was  looked  upon  in  China 
as  a  better  friend  than  the  other  Powers,  and  he  hoped 
that  we  should  not  join  with  them  in  putting  pressure 
on  the  Chinese  Government.  Sir  P.  Currie  replied 
that  the  last  statement  of  the  Chinese  Minister  was 
hardly  consistent  with  the  fact  that  one  of  the  first 
killed  at  Wuhsueh  was  an  English  missionary."' 

The  rioters  in  Chentu  (Szechuan)  appear  to  have 
been  equally  thorough  in  1895.  ''Like  a  thunderbolt 
from  the  blue,  the  storm  burst,  and  ceased  not  till  every 
mission  compound  in  Chentu,  Protestant  and  Roman 
Catholic,  had  been  first  looted  and  then  completely 
destroyed  In  some  cases  the  buildings  were  burned, 
but  most  were  torn  down  and  carried  away  piece  by 

1  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1892,  p.  59.  *  IHd.^  p.  5. 


260  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

piece,  until  in  a  few  hours'  time  not  so  much  as  a 
foundation  stone,  or  a  piece  of  timber  the  size  of  a 
shingle,  remained."^ 

Colonel  Scott  Moncrieff  is  of  opinion  that  "although, 
both  in  India  in  1857,  and  in  China  in  1900  [the  Boxer 
year],  the  missionaries  were  not  to  blame  for  the 
massacres  and  bloodshed  which  took  place;  and 
although  other  causes,  entirely  unconnected  with 
Christian  truth,  were  at  the  bottom  of  the  upheaval 
in  both  cases,  it  is  certainly  true  that  Christian  missions 
in  both  cases  were  involved,  and  that  hatred  of 
Christianity  was  one  of  the  most  powerful  motives  in 
the  minds  of  the  agitators."* 

Another  view  of  the  matter  is  that  "the  hatred 
directed  against  the  missionaries  is  only  a  peculiarly 
virulent  form  of  the  hatred  directed  against  Europeans 
generally.  .  .  .  Missionary  work  is  practically  the  only 
agency  through  which  the  influence  of  Western  civilisa- 
tion can  at  present  [1896]  reach  the  masses.  The 
European  merchant  is  scarcely  brought  into  contact 
with  any  other  than  the  trading  classes,  and  his  influence 
is,  at  any  rate,  localised  within  the  vicinity  of  the  treaty 
ports  where  he  resides.  That  of  foreign  officials  is 
mainly  restricted  within  a  similar  area,  and  confined  to 
the  Chinese  officials  with  whom  he  has  to  deal.  The 
missionary  alone  goes  out  into  the  byways  as  well  as 
the  highways,  and,  whether  he  resides  in  a  treaty  port, 
or  in  some  remote  province,  strives  to  live  with,  among, 
and  for  the  people."' 

"A  missionary,"  wrote  Dr  Edkins  to  Sir  Rutherford 
Alcock,  in  1869,  "was  not  long  ago  driven  out  of  a 
large  city  in  the  Province  of  Honan  by  a  mob,  led  on 
by  the  native  gentry,  the  cause  of  whose  hatred  to  him 

1  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  CkinOj  1907,  edited  by  D. 
MacGillivray,  p.  113. 

^  Eastern  Missions  Jirom  a  Soldiet^s  Standpoint^  1907,  Colonel  G.  K« 
Scott  Moncriefi^  CLE.,  pp.  17-18. 

"  The  Far  Eastern  Question^  1896^  Valentine  Cbirol,  pp.  79-8a 


CfflNA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  261 

was  given  in  these  words,  shouted  after  him  as  he  left 
the  city: — 'You  burned  our  palace,  you  killed  our 
Emperor,  you  sell  poison  to  the  people,  and  now  you 
come  professing  to  teach  us  virtue ! "  ^ 

"In  mediaeval  Europe,"  says  Mr  Di6sy,  "if  there 
was  an  outbreak  of  the  plague  or  a  failure  of  the  crops, 
the  mob  generally  burnt  a  Jew ;  in  Modern  China,  in 
case  of  any  calamity,  or  any  untoward  event,  such  as 
the  loss  of  a  pig-tail,  they  stone  a  missionary.  There 
is  little  doubt  that  tail-cutting  outrages  have  sometimes 
been  planned  by  deep  schemers,  with  the  prospect  of 
raising  a  popular  ferment  in  view  of  consequent  anti- 
foreign  outrages,  and  the  embarrassments  into  which 
they  lead  the  Government  at  Peking."* 

"The  cause  of  the  riots  [at  Chentu,  in  1895]  was 
the  innate  suspicion  on  the  part  of  all  classes  of  the 
people  with  regard  to  foreigners,  their  presence  in  this 
far  inland  city,  and  their  possible  evil  designs.  Such 
suspicion,  gradually  accumulating,  was  very  easily 
changed  into  hatred,  and  this  again  into  action, 
fomented,  as  it  undoubtedly  was,  by  some  of  the 
highest  officials.  This  last  statement  is  proved  by 
the  fact  that  the  riots  were  allowed  to  proceed 
absolutely  unchecked  for  twenty-four  hours  in  a  great 
provincial  capital,  the  residence  of  a  Viceroy,  a  Tartar 
General,  a  Provincial  Commander-in-Chief,  a  Provincial 
Judge,  a  Provincial  Treasurer,  and  two  Taotais,  with 
many  thousands  of  soldiers  at  their  beck  and  call."' 

"A  few  years  ago,  a  Hindu  soldier  on  guard  at  the 
British  Consulate  at  Chinkiang  struck  a  Chinaman. 
In  half  an  hour  all  the  foreign  houses  in  the  settlement 
were  laid  in  ashes.  At  Canton,  a  foreign  tide-waiter 
in  the  Customs  Service  shot  a  boy  by  accident.  A 
furious  attack  was  made  on  the  foreign  quarter,  which 
narrowly  escaped  destruction.    At  Ichang,  in  1895*  ^ 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (9),  1870,  p.  5. 

>  The  New  Far  East^  1900,  Arthur  Di68y,  F.R.G.S.,  p.  74* 

>  A  CifUury  of  Protestant  Missions  in  CkinOj  p.  114. 


262  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

shot  from  an  air-gfun  striking  a  small  official,  the 
population  threw  themselves  on  the  handful  of 
foreigners,  and  a  massacre  would  have  ensued,  but 
for  the  opportune  arrival  of  a  force  from  a  gfunboat. 
These  instances  (and  such  are  numerous)  suffice  to 
show  what  fires  are  burning  beneath  a  thin  crust  of 
cold  lava,  and  to  prove  that  if  missionaries  are  attacked 
oftener  than  others,  it  is  chiefly  because  they  are  more 
exposed."^ 

"  The  old  opposition  is  not  dead,"  remarks  Rev.  T. 
Selby,  "and  flames  up  at  intervals,  especially  when  the 
political  relations  of  China  with  the  outside  world 
become  critical  and  strained."  *    For  example  :• — 

"In  the  summer  of  1884  several  French  warships 
appeared,  and  very  soon  the  news  spread  throughout 
Formosa  that  the  French  were  coming.  The  people 
were  both  alarmed  and  enraged.  Their  animosity  was 
aroused  against  all  foreigners  and  those  associated  with 
them.  The  missionary  was  at  once  suspected,  and 
native  Christians  were  accused  of  being  in  league  with 
France  Torture  and  death  were  threatened  against  all 
our  converts."' 

Mrs  Bishop  gives  a  more  striking  illustration  still. 
"  Manchuria  is  far  less  hostile  to  foreigners  than  the  rest 
of  China,  and  the  name  'devil*  may  even  be  used  as  a 
polite  address  with  the  prefix  of  '  honourable ' ! "  After 
war  was  declared  between  China  and  Japan  (ist 
August  1894),  anti- foreign  feeling  grew  rapidly, 
the  people  "  wrecking  Christian  chapels,  not  from  anti- 
Christian  feeling  but  from  anti-foreign  feeling.  Their 
hatred  of  foreigners  culminated  at  Liau- Yang,  40  miles 
from  Muk-den,  when  Manchu  soldiers,  after  wrecking  the 
Christian  chapel,  beat  Mr  Wylie,  a  Scotch  missionary, 
to  death,  and  attacked  the  chief  magistrate  for  his 
friendliness  to  the  'foreign-devils.*  .   .   .    Anti-foreign 

1  A  Cycie  0/ Calkayy  1896,  W.  A  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  p.  447. 

*  Chinamen  at  ffome,  1900,  Thomas  G.  Selby,  p.  202. 

'  Ffvm  Far  Formosa,  1896^  George  Leslie  Mackay,  D.D.,  p.  189. 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  263 

feeling  rose  rapidly  in  Muk-den  .  .  .  the  '  street-chapels ' 
were  closed,  the  native  Christians,  a  large  body,  being 
very  apprehensive  for  their  own  safety,  being  regarded 
as  'one  with  the  foreigners,'  who,  unfortunately,  were 
generally  supposed  to  be  *  the  same  as  the  Japanese.' "  ^ 

"  It  is  not  to  be  questioned,"  wrote  Mr  Holcombe,  in 
1904,  "that  mobs  and  violent  disturbances  are  more 
frequently  directed  against  missionaries  than  against 
any  other  foreigners.  The  explanation  of  this  fact  is 
very  simple.  All  other  classes  of  foreigners  live  at  the 
treaty  ports,  under  the  guns,  or  within  easy  reach  of  the 
ubiquitous  man-of-war.  They  have  little  direct  connec- 
tion with  the  masses  of  Chinese,  and  seldom  or  never 
come  into  contact  with  them.  And  those  Chinese  who 
live  at  the  ports  have  learned  by  bitter  experience  the 
danger  of  troubling  the  foreigners."  * 

The  Minister  of  the  United  States  in  China  tells  us 
in  1906: — "It  is  not  because  of  his  religion  that  the 
missionary  is  attacked  by  mobs ;  it  is  because  of  his 
race.  It  is  the  foreigner  and  not  the  Christian  against 
whom  the  mobs  are  gathered.  The  disturbances  of 
1900  have  abundantly  proved  this  to  be  true."' 

The  Circular  of  the  Chinese  Government,  before- 
mentioned,  proposed  as  the  remedies  for  these,  and  other 
difficulties  presently  to  be  noticed,  "that  all  foreigners 
visiting,  or  residing  in,  the  interior  of  the  country  for  the 
purposes  of  Christian  propagandism  should  divest  them- 
selves of  extra-territorial  privileges  and  become  subject 
to  territorial  jurisdiction,  as  they  would  be  in  any 
Western  country.  In  that  case  their  work,  falling  under 
the  supervision  of  local  officialdom,  equally  with  the  work 
of  propagandists  of  other  foreign  faiths,  as  Islamism  and 
Buddhism,  would  at  once  cease  to  be  an  object  of 
popular   suspicion,    and    the    communities    of   native 

^  Korea  and  ktr  Neighbours^  1898,  Mrs  Bishop,  vol.  L,  pp.  244-5. 
*  CMnds  past  and fiUurey  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  pp.  94-5. 
'  China  and  her  People^  1906,  Hon.  Charles  Denby,  LL.D.,  vol  i., 
p.  225. 


264         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Christians,  being  no  longer  invidiously  segregated  from 
their  fellow-countrymen,  would  be  able  to  cherish  and 
practise  their  faith  in  unobtrusive  tranquillity."^ 

Commenting  on  the  Circular  and  its  allegations — 
which  for  the  most  part  concerned  Catholic  mission- 
aries— Captain  Brinkley  observes  that  "the  question 
of  permanent  interest  is,  what  confidence  may  be 
reposed  in  the  Tsuftg'-li  Yamins  accusation?  It 
is  here  that  the  silence  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
missionaries  presents  a  barrier  to  clear  judgment. 
These  heroic  men  never  open  their  mouths  in  self- 
defence.  They  evidently  think  that  whatever  suffering 
the  charges  of  detractors  inflict  on  them  must  be  borne 
patiently  and  in  silence  as  part  of  the  duty  they  owe  to 
their  cause.  In  this  respect  their  consistency  is  splendid. 
They  look  for  a  higher  judgment  than  that  of  man.  No 
testimony  offers,  therefore,  except  that  of  the  Chinese, 
or  of  men  who,  professing  a  different  creed,  may  not  be 
held  entirely  free  from  bias.  The  unanimity  of  such 
testimony,  however,  removes  all  possibility  of  doubting 
that  the  state  of  affairs  in  1871  was  pretty  much  what 
the  Tsung-li  Yamin  represented  it  to  be,  and  that  it 
remains  so  to  this  day.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  must  be  assumed  to  have  deliber- 
ately weighed  the  advantages  of  the  system  they  pursue. 
They  are  eminently  competent  men,  and  no  considera- 
tion of  inconvenience  or  suffering  for  themselves  would 
possess  the  smallest  weight  as  against  the  better 
promotion  of  their  cause.  That  they  would  gladly 
submit  their  own  persons  to  Chinese  jurisdiction  if  they 
thought  that  Christian  propagandism  would  be  advan- 
taged by  such  a  step  admits  of  no  question.  ...  It  is 
not  to  be  supposed  that  the  Governments  of  Europe 
and  America  would  consent  to  entrust  the  persons 
and  property  of  the  missionaries  to  Chinese  jurisdic- 
tion. Whatever  the  missionaries  themselves  might 
choose,  their  countries   will   never   officially  sanction 

*  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  pp.  137-8. 


CHINA  AI4D  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  265 

such  an  arransrement  until  China  effects  reforms  justi- 
fying it"  ^ 

On  this  matter,  Mr  Holcombe  skives  it  as  his 
opinion  that  ''the  suggestion  that  missionaries  should 
cast  off  all  claims  of  nationality,  and  place  themselves 
at  the  mercy  of  the  people  they  desire  to  serve,  refusing 
to  appeal  to  their  own  governments  for  protection  is  as 
idle  and  valueless  as  the  effort  to  conceal  a  foreign 
nationality  by  donning  Chinese  clothes.  The  China- 
man despises  no  man  so  much  as  the  man  without  a 
country.  He  would  not  believe  in  any  such  absolute 
expatriation,  and  would  decide  that  the  simple-minded 
missionary  was  even  a  deeper  trickster  than  others  of 
his  class.  Or,  he  would  conclude  that  this  homeless 
individual  had  left  his  country  for  his  country's  good — 
had  either  been  banished,  or  was  in  hiding  because  of 
some  criminal  ofifence."* 

In  the  absence  of  any  official  pronouncement,  the 
question  may  be  asked  : — Is  it  probable  in  the  face  of 
the  events  of  the  last  forty  years  or  so,  that  Christianity 
would  have  been  advantaged  at  any  time  by  the 
adoption  of  such  a  step  as  was  advocated  in  1871  by 
the  Tsung4t  Yamin  ? 

Before  the  days  of  "treaties  of  commerce,  forced 
upon  the  Chinese  under  circumstances  which  left  them 
no  power  to  refuse,"  •  the  Christian  missionary  carried 
on  his  work  with  such  results  as  might  accrue;  but 
China  was  left  comparatively  unmolested. 

In  these  latter  times,  what  with  the  Christian 
nations — ^whose  citizens  the  missionaries  are — "enter- 
ing upon  states  of  reprisals";  "requesting  leases"  of 
valuable  territory  here  ;  claiming  "  spheres  of  influence" 
there;  and  clamouring  for  "concessions"  of  all  sorts 
everywhere ;  not  to  mention  some,  at  least,  ostracising 
Chinese  subjects  by  taxation  or  prohibition ;  while  our 

^  Brinkley,  voL  xii.,  pp.  142-3-4. 

'  Chitufs  past  and  future^  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  p.  106. 

'  The  Englishman  in  ChtnOj  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  vol  ii.,  p.  227. 


266         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

own  country  has  permitted  the  hoardings  of  its  cities  to 
be  placarded  with  pictures  representing  cruelties  allegfed 
to  be  practised  by  British  subjects  upon  the  hapless 
labourer  from  the  Flowery  Land;  and  one  and  all, 
forgetting,  in  their  anxiety  to  be  beforehand  with  other 
'*  pioneers  of  civilisation  "  and  become  rich,  the  element- 
ary fact  that  China  belongs  to  the  Chinese — in  effect, 
undoing  from  without,  all  that  the  missionaries  were 
endeavouring  to  build  up  from  within — Christian 
Missions  have  assumed  a  different  aspect. 

Thus  the  course  proposed  might  not  inconceivably 
have  resulted  in  the  decimation  of  the  ranks  of  the 
missionaries,  not  by  martyrdom  for  their  Faith,  as  of 
old,  and  with  which  those  concerned  would  have  been 
the  last  to  quarrel;  but  as  the  result  of  vengeance 
exacted  for  the  doings  of  their  Christian  compatriots ; 
the  destruction  of  the  work  hitherto  accomplished; 
and  the  lapse  of,  at  least,  a  portion  of  the  body  of 
native  Christians  into  the  heathenism  from  which 
Europe  and  America  so  loudly  proclaim  it  to  be  their 
mission  to  reclaim  them. 

A  distinguished  personage  was  stated  by  a  speaker 
at  a  meeting  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society  to  have 
publicly  declared  that  "Christian  truths  were  the  most 
valuable  British  possession."^  They  may  be  so 
regarded  in  India,  where  those  words  were  spoken.  In 
the  Far  East  they  appear  to  be  viewed  in  quite  another 
light,  viz.,  a  stepping-stone  to  further  possessions,  and 
those  of  a  material  order. 

''First  the  missionary,  then  the  gunboat,  then  the 
land-grabbing — that  is  the  procession  of  events  in  the 
Chinese  mind,"'  said  one  who  wrote  in  1901. 

"The  folly  of  our  missionary  methods,"  says  Mr 
Krausse,  "is  further  accentuated  by  their  connection 
with  other  interests.  If  there  be  any  truth  in  the  plaint 
that  the  attempted  Christianising  of  the  Chinese   is 

1  The  Times^  2nd  May  1906.  ♦ 

^  The  War  of  ^  CivUisaU4ms^  1901,  George  Lynch,  p.  254. 


CHINA  AND  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS  267 

undertaken  for  the  good  of  the  people's  souls,  then 
should  the  missionary  be  kept  apart  from  the  trader  and 
prospector.  But  he  is  not.  The  one  invariably  follows 
the  other ;  and  the  Chinese  realise  that  the  advent  of 
the  disciple  of  Christ  is  the  symbol  of  the  approach 
of  the  'barbarian'  trader,  who  in  turn  will  be 
succeeded  by  the  concession  hunter  and  exploiter."  ^ 

Sir  Rutherford  Alcock  told  us,  years  ago,  that  "  we 
cannot  be  surprised  if  the  rulers  of  China  and  the 
people  look  upon  all  missionaries,  and  those  more 
especially  of  the  Roman  Church  under  French 
protection,  with  profound  distrust  and  hatred.  .  .  . 
With  this  ever  present  menace  and  source  of  anxiety 
pre-occupying  the  minds  of  the  responsible  members  of 
the  Government,  the  Prince  of  Kung's  parting  words  to 
me  when  I  was  leaving  Peking,  no  doubt  expressed  the 
thought  that  was  uppermost  in  his  mind  :  '  If  only  you 
could  relieve  us  of  missionaries  and  opium,  all  might  be 
well!'"* 

The  Christian  nations  having  declined  to  do  the 
last,  China  is  setting  about  it  herself.  There  does  not 
appear  to  be  any  prospect  of  the  application  of  a  similar 
drastic  process  being  permitted  in  the  case  of  mission- 
aries, who  will  therefore  remain.  This  being  so,  it  is  to 
be  deplored  that  the  outcome  of  the  intercourse  of  the 
Christian  nations  with  China  should  have  been  that,  as 
lately  as  the  opening  years  of  the  present  century,  she 
stored  up  "a  fund  of  the  deepest  resentment"  towards 
them ;  and  that  at  any  period  during  that  intercourse, 
missionaries — the  exponents  of  the  Faith,  by  the 
precepts  of  which  those  nations,  or  most  of  them, 
claim  to  be  guided — should  have  been  regarded  with 
"profound  distrust  and  hatred";  not  because  they 
taught  the  ''Worship  of  the  Lord  of  the  Heavens" 

^  The  Far  Easty  its  History  and  its  Question,  1900,  Alexis  Krausse, 
p.  211. 

>  TAe  Nineteent/^  Cemiury,  November  1886,  Sir  Rutherford  Alcock, 
p.  62a 


268         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

(Roman  Catholic  Faith),  or  the  "Jesus  Doctrine" 
(Protestant  Faith),  to  show  the  Chinese  how  to  attain 
to  the  ''better  land"  in  the  next  world;  but  because 
they  were  the  brethren  of  the  ** Foreign-Devil"  only 
anxious  to  relieve  them  of  the  land  they  possessed  in  the 
present  one. 


PART   III 
CATHOLIC  MISSIONS 


CHAPTER  I 

I 

THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK 

A  TRAVELLER  in  Korea — after  describing  the  good 
work  done  by  Protestant  missionaries,  and  the  harmony 
prevailing  among  the  different  denominations,  as  well 
as  the  cordial  and  sympathetic  feeling  towards  the 
Koreans — ^makes  the  following  observations  : — **  As  I 
looked  upon  those  lighted  faces,  wearing  an  expression 
strongly  contrasting  with  the  dull,  dazed  look  of  apathy 
which  is  characteristic  of  the  Korean,  it  was  impossible 
not  to  recognise  that  it  was  the  teaching  of  the  Apostolic 
doctrines  of  sin,  judgment  to  come,  and  divine  love, 
which  had  brought  about  such  results;  all  the  more 
remarkable  because,  according  to  the  missionaries,  a 
large  majority  of  those  who  had  renounced  daemon 
worship,  and  were  living  in  fear  of  the  true  God,  had 
been  attracted  to  Christianity,  in  the  first  instance,  by 
the  hope  of  gain !  This  and  almost  unvarying  testi- 
mony to  the  same  effect,  confirm  me  in  the  opinion  that 
when  people  talk  of 'nations  craving  for  the  Gospel,' 
*  stretching  out  pleading  hands  for  it,'  or  'athirst  for 
God,'  or  'longing  for  the  living  waters,'  they  are  using 
words  which  in  that  connection  have  no  meaning. 
That  there  are  'seekers  after  righteousness'  here  and 
there,  I  do  not  doubt,  but  I  believe  that  the  one  'crav- 
ing' of  the  Far  East  is  for  money — that  'unrest'  is 
only  in  the  East  a  synonym  for  poverty,  and  that  the 
spiritual  instincts  have  yet  to  be  created."  ^ 

'  Korea  and  her  Neighbours^  1898,  Mrs  Bishop,  vol.  ii.,  pp.  157,  161-2. 
2n 


272         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  the  course  of  an  address  on  "Education  in 
China,"  in  October  1907,  Dr  Wardlaw  Thompson  re- 
marked that  **the  astounding  change  which  had  come 
over  China  was  due,  not  to  any  great  change  of  feeling 
towards  the  Western  nations.  China  to-day  did  not 
want  our  Christianity.  She  wanted  to  learn  the  secrets 
of  applied  science  that  had  made  the  Western  nations 
strong  in  the  world.  But  what,  if  in  giving  up  these 
secrets,  we  destroyed  the  ethic  which  had  influenced 
China  for  three  thousand  years,  and  in  its  place  did  not 
give  an  ethic  purer  than  that  of  Confucius  ?  Give  China 
the  Science  without  Christianity,  and  woe  betide  us! 
We  should  have  raised  up  a  dragon  of  portentous  size 
and  strength,  a  competitor  without  scruple  or  conscience. 
Thus  the  responsibility  of  the  Christian  Churches  at  the 
present  time  was  tremendous."^ 

In  the  light  of  the  evidence  available,  it  cannot  be 
said  that  the  Christian  nations  of  the  West  have 
exhibited  a  very  high  ideal  to  the  non-Christian  peoples 
of  the  East.  We  have  seen  them  actuated  by  very  little 
save  the  desire  of  temporal  advantage  in  one  form  or 
another;  while  the  missionaries  were  regarded  by  the 
countries  which  sent  them  as  "always  a  difficulty."* 

Captain  Mahan,  however,  insists  on  the  policy  of  the 
"open  door,"  in  dealing  with  the  Chinese  question,  not 
only  for  commerce,  but  also  for  the  entrance  of  European 
thought,  and  its  teachers  in  the  various  branches  there- 
of, when  they  seek  admission  voluntarily,  and  not  as 
agents  of  a  foreign  Government.  Not  only  is  the 
influence  of  the  thinker  superior  in  true  value  to  the 
mere  gain  of  commerce,  but  also  there  is  danger  to  the 
European  family  of  nations,  in  case  China  should 
develop  an  organised  strength,  whence  has  been 
excluded  the  corrective  and  elevating  element  of  the 
higher  ideals,  which  in  Europe  have  made  good  their 
controlling  influence  over  mere  physical  might.   .   .  . 

*  The  Timesy  ist  November  1907. 
'  Ibid.y  i6th  February  1906. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  273 

Christianity  and  Christian  teaching  are  just  as  really 
factors  in  the  mental  and  moral  equipment  of  European 
civilisation,  as  any  of  the  philosophical  or  scientific  pro- 
cesses that  have  gone  to  build  up  the  general  result. 
.  .  .  From  the  purely  political  standpoint,  Christian 
thought  and  teaching  have  just  the  same  right— -no  less, 
if  no  more — to  admission  into  China,  as  any  other  form 
of  European  activity,  commercial  or  intellectual.  Nor 
is  the  fact  of  offence  taken  by  classes  of  Chinamen  a 
valid  argument  for  exclusion.  The  building  of  a  rail- 
road is  not  a  distinctively  Christian  act,  but  it  offends 
large  numbers  of  Chinese,  who  are  nevertheless  com- 
pelled to  acquiesce  if  their  Government  consent ;  where- 
as, the  consent  of  the  Chinese  Government  to  missionary 
effort  will  compel  no  Chinaman  to  listen  to  a  Christian 
teacher.^ 

It  would  be  well  if  the  **  danger  to  the  European 
family  of  nations"  likely  to  arise  from  a  system  of 
education,  "whence  has  been  excluded  the  corrective 
and  elevating  elements  of  the  higher  ideals,"  were 
recognised  more  acutely  by  the  members  of  the  family 
in  the  domestic  circle.  But  it  cannot  be  too  clearly 
understood  that  the  Catholic  Church  has  not  gone  to 
China  merely  to  avert  what  is  known  as  the  "  Yellow 
Peril,"  i.e.,  the  overrunning  of  the  nations  of  the  West 
by  those  of  the  Far  East;  or  even  as  primarily  an 
agent  of  Western  civilisation.  She  is  there  in  pursuance 
of  the  Divine  Command  to  "  Go  and  teach  all  nations." 
Education  enters  into  her  scheme  of  operations  as  an 
incident,  and  with  it  ideas  savouring  more  or  less  of  the 
West,  but,  again,  only  as  incidents.  In  a  word.  Her 
object  is  not  to  transform  the  Chinese  into  French, 
English,  or  Italians,  but  into  Christians ;  and  it  will  be 
under  this  heading  only  that  the  Christian  missionary 
will  one  day  have  to  give  an  account  of  his  stewardship. 

It   is,    possibly,    forgetfulness   of  this    fact   which 

*  The  Problem  of  Asia,   1900,  Captain  A.  T.  Mahan,   U.S.N.,  pp. 
167-8-9. 

S 


274  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

prompted    such    an    utterance    as    the    following: — 

*'  Furthermore,  we  must  never  forgret  the  great  contrast 

of  ideals  and  purposes  of  Protestant  and  Catholic  mis- 

,   sionaries.     The  Roman  Catholic,  noble,  self-denying, 

self-effacing,  willing  martyr  as    he   often  is,   forms  a 

community,  holds  his  converts  to  the  Church,  but  does 

not  in  any  appreciable  way  touch  the  art,  literature, 

traditions,  or  ideals  of  the  people.     If  his  people  are 

good  Catholics,  they  may  still  plod  on  in  their  old  ruts. 

^But  the  Protestant  missionary  comes  to  reform  society. 

He  brings  leaven,  he  makes  upheaval,  he  influences  art, 

literature,  tradition,  ideals.     He  gives  a  new  view  and 

compels  change,  and  change  for  the  better.    Conse- 

Vfluently,  there  is  to-day  a  *  young  China,'  etc.,  etc."  ^ 

Whether  the  Catholic  missionary  has  had  any 
influence  or  not  on  the  art,  literature,  etc.,  of  China, 
we  do  not  propose  to  discuss.  All  we  have  to  remark 
is,  that  if  all  China  were  "good  Catholics,"  even  though 
art,  literature,  and  the  rest,  remained  untouched,  the 
work  of  the  missionary  would  have  been  a  success, 
for  he  would  have  completed  the  task  whereunto  he 
was  put  by  his  divine  Master.  Consequently,  the 
first  and  principal  capacity  in  which  we  shall  consider 
him,  is  that  of  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  standard 
by  which  we  shall  invite  judgment  of  the  recorded 
accounts  of  his  doings  is  that  set  out  by  our  Lord 
in  His  instructions  to  the  missionaries  He  sent  Himself, 
as  recorded  by  the  Evangelists. 

Another  **  salient  difference  between  the  methods 
of  the  Protestants  and  the  Roman  Catholics,"  says 
Captain  Brinkley — ^speaking,  of  course,  of  a  time  long 
past,  for  missionaries  are  ubiquitous  to-day — "was  that 
the  former  never  attempted  to  violate  the  law  by 
penetrating  into  the  interior."* 

In  thus  regarding  the  work  of  the  Catholic  missionary 
in  the  interior  as  a  "violation  of  the  law,"  there  is  an 

1  America  in,  the  East^  1899,  William  Elliott  Griffis,  pp.  84-5. 
'  Chinoy  etc,y  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  vol  xi.,  p.  154. 


THE  inSSIONARY  AT  WORK  275 

assumption  which  is  in  no  way  justified,  viz.,  that  the   ) 
Law  of  the  Land  can  override  the  Law  of  God.    The  / 
same  God  who  gave  the  Ten  Commandments  gave  also  ^ 
the  command,  "  Go  ye  into  the  whole  world  and  preach  ^ 
the  gospel  to  every  creature,"  ^  and  to  the  observance  of    \ 
this  precept  is  due  the  fact  that  Europe  is  professedly 
Christian  to-day. 

This  ** violation  of  the  law"  seems  to  have  been 
characteristic  of  Catholic  missionaries  from  the  beginning 
— not  only  in  China,  but  elsewhere.  "And  the  high 
priest  asked  them  saying :  Commanding  we  commanded 
you  that  you  should  not  teach  in  this  name :  and  behold 
you  have  filled  Jerusalem  with  your  doctrine.  .  .  .  But 
Peter  and  the  Apostles  answering,  said :  We  ought  to 
obey  God  rather  than  men  .  .  .  and  we  are  witnesses 
of  these  things.  .  .  .  And  calling  in  the  Apostles,  after 
they  had  scourged  them,  they  charged  them  that  they 
should  not  speak  at  all  in  the  name  of  Jesus.  .  .  .  And 
they  ceased  not  in  the  temple  and  from  house  to  house, 
to  teach  and  preach  Christ  Jesus."  ^ 

Here,  then,  we  have  a  plain  instruction  on  the  part 
of  "the  authorities,"  and  as  plain  an  assertion  by  the 
first  Apostles  that  the  said  authorities  were  incompetent 
to  give  it.  From  an  apostolic  point  of  view,  this 
method  of  "going"  seems  not  without  its  advantages, 
^.jf.,  "Gutzlaff  was  himself  an  earnest  and  sincere 
Christian,"  as  Dr  Campbell  Gibson  tells  us,  "but 
greatly  lacked  discretion,  and  allowed  himself  to  be 
deceived  by  professing  Christians.  Living  at  Hong- 
Kong,  he  employed  a  number  of  native  evangelists, 
whom  he  sent,  as  he  believed,  into  the  various  provinces 
of  China,  to  preach  and  come  back  after  long  absence, 
and  report  their  experiences.  Gutzlaff  also  sought  by 
the  help  of  these  men  to  circulate  the  Scriptures,  and, 
when  they  came  back  to  him  for  instruction,  he  often 
put  into  their  hands  considerable  quantities  of  these 

^  Mark  xvL  is* 
*  Acts  V.  27-42, 


276         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

books.  Afterwards,  however,  when  the  work  passed 
into  the  hands  of  Hambergf,  he  discovered  that  these 
so-called  catechists  were,  for  the  most  part,  deceivers, 
who  had  spent  their  time  in  the  neigrhbourhood  of 
Hong-Kong,  employed  about  their  own  affairs ;  and 
manufacturing  reports  for  Gutzlaff,  induced  some  of  their 
friends  to  visit  him  along  with  them,  and  be  passed  off 
as  converts  from  distant  regions.  The  books  which 
were  entrusted  to  them  they  sold  to  the  printer,  and 
the  printer,  in  turn,  sold  them  once  more  to  Dr  Gutzlaff. 
So  Gutzlaff  and  the  printer  maintained  between  them  a 
continuous  circulation  of  the  Scriptures."^ 

A  further  advantage  accrued  from  this  Catholic 
method  of  "going,"  viz.,  they  were  the  first  Europeans 
on  the  field.  Mr  Holcombe  will  explain: — "Another 
class  of  objectors  to  the  presence  of  missionaries  in 
China,"  he  tells  us,  "  deserve  more  serious  consideration. 
Some  among  them  insist  that  the  missionary  is  ahead 
of  his  time,  and  hence  out  of  place  in  China.  They 
argue  that  modern  civilisation  and  commerce  should 
first  be  allowed  to  do  their  work,  and  then  the  missionary 
might  follow  and  reap  his  harvest.  Just  how  much  might 
be  left  for  them  to  glean  and  to  garner  after  these  two 
forces  had  done  their  work,  the  advocates  of  this  policy 
have  perhaps  not  seriously  considered.  With  opium  as 
the  chief  corner-stone  upon  which  the  fabric  of  British 
commerce  in  China  has  been  built;  with  an  eager 
selfish  spirit  of  money-getting  ready  to  pander  to  every 
native  vice,  and  to  import  even  grosser  vices  from 
abroad,  so  long  as  the  Chinese  can  pay  the  bill ;  with 
object-lessons  in  drunkenness,  gambling,  and  adultery, 
found  thick  in  every  centre  of  foreign  trade  in  China, 
the  question  might  well  be  raised  and  repeated :  what 
would  be  left  for  the  missionary  to  gather,  after  a 
non-Christian  civilisation  and  an  un-Christian  commerce 
had  done  their  work  and  reaped  their  harvest  ?    That 

^  Mission  PrcdUms  and  Methods  in  South  China^  1901,  J.  Campbell 
Gibson,  M.A,  D.D.^  p.  149. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  277 

the  Christian  missionary  invariably  finds  his  best  field 
and  his  greatest  success  in  interior  districts,  where  the 
presence  and  habits  of  some  commercial  foreigners  have 
not  prejudiced  the  Chinese  against  everything  from 
abroad  is  a  humiliating  fact"^ 

That  the  Catholic  missionaries  accepted  the  command 
of  their  Master,  to  "go"  and  teach,  very  literally,  as 
far  as  China  was  concerned,  is  evident  from  the  generous 
language  employed  in  their  regard  by  Colonel  Yule, 
R.E.  "T.  T.  Cooper  .  .  .  was  the  first,  with  the 
exception  of  the  French  missionary  priests,  to  penetrate 
the  mountains  west  of  Sze-chuen."*  "But  here  it  is 
necessary  to  interpose  a  caveat.  When  we  speak  of 
the  commencement  of  modern  exploration  in  China  and 
Tibet,  or  allude  to  any  modern  traveller  as  being  the 
first  to  visit  this  or  that  secluded  locality  in  those 
regions,  it  must  be  understood  that  we  begin  by  making 
a  large  exception  in  favour  of  the  missionaries  of  the 
Roman  Church  ;  for  those  regions  have  to  a  great  extent, 
and  for  many  years  past,  been  habitually  traversed  by  the 
devoted  labourers  who  have  been  extending  the  cords  of 
their  Church  in  the  interior,  and  on  the  inland  frontier  of 
China.  .  .  .  There  are,  indeed,  notable  exceptions,  of 
which  we  shall  presently  take  account ;  but  apart  from 
these,  in  hardly  any  instance  has  a  traveller  penetrated 
to  a  point  where  he  has  not  found  a  member  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  missions  to  have  gone  before  him.  .  .  . 
A  letter  written  by  an  eminent  member  of  these 
missions  was  received  by  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal, 
to  their  no  small  surprise,"  from  Tibetan  territory  in 
1 86 1.  "  When  Lieutenant  Garnier  and  his  party  made 
their  rapid  and  venturesome  visit  to  Ta-Li-Fu,  in  1868, 
their  guide  and  helper  was  their  countryman  M. 
Leguilcher  of  the  same  mission,  whom  they  found  in 
his  seclusion  near  the  north  end  of  the  Lake  of  Ta-Li- 

^  Chinees  past  and  future^  1904,  Hon.  Chester  Holcombe,  p.  90. 
*  The  River  of  Golden  Sand^  1883  (in  Memoir  of  Captain  Gill,  R.E.), 
Colonel  Henry  Yule,  C.B.,  R.E.,  p.  25. 


278         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Fu.  .  .  •  Not  only  at  Ch'ung-Ch'ing  and  at  Ch  eng-Tu 
did  Captain  Gill  find  kindly  aid  from  members  of  these 
missions,  but  at  Ta-Chien-Lu,  on  the  acclivity  of  the  great 
Tibetan  plateau,  like  Mr  Cooper  before  him,  he  found,  as 
we  have  mentioned  in  his  memoir,  cordial  welcome  from 
the  venerable  Bishop  Chauveau.  Members  of  the  same 
body  were  found  by  both  travellers  also  at  Bat'angf,  in 
the  basin  of  the  Kin-sha,  and  on  both  occasions,  at  nine 
years  interval,  the  Abb6  Desgodins  was  one  of  their 
number."^ 

Others  appear  to  have  had  similar  experience. 
"The  first  Protestant  missionaries  to  visit  Sz'chwan" 
were  Dr  Griffith  John  and  Mr  Wylie.  '*  They  travelled 
3000  miles,  taking  five  months  to  complete,  and 
Dr  John  records,  'from  the  day  we  left  Hankow  to 
the  day  we  returned  to  it,  we  never  saw  a  foreigner, 
with  the  exception  of  two  or  three  Roman  Catholic 
priests,  and  never  came  across  a  single  Protestant 
convert.'"* 

At  Lanchow  [Kansu],  *'The  first  and  only  Pro- 
testant missionary  who  had  ever  visited  Lanchow,  found 
two  Roman  Catholic  places  of  worship,  and  one,  if  not 
more,  resident  priests."* 

In  1877,  ''Roman  Catholics  had  long  been  established 
in  this  region,  but,  at  the  time  of  Mr  McCarthy's  visit, 
there  was  not  a  single  Protestant  missionary  to  be  found 
anywhere  in  Szchwan."* 

At  Ta-Li-Fu,  again,  Mr  Cameron,  the  pioneer 
Protestant  missionary,  found  that  "a  Roman  Catholic 
bishop  and  two  priests  were  carrying  on  a  wide  work 
here.  *When  will  a  Protestant  missionary  be  labour- 
ing in  these  regions  ? '  sorrowfully  wrote  the  pioneer."  ' 

>  The  River  of  Golden  Sand^  pp.  96-7. 

*  Life  in  West  China^  1905,  Robert  J.  Davidson  and  Isaac  Mason, 

'  Story  of  the  China  Inland  Mission^  1900,  M.  Geraldine  Guinness, 
vol.  il,  p.  19a 

*  Ibid,y  p.  210. 

*  Ibid.^  p.  261. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  279 

"Up  to  this  time  no  Protestant  had  lived  here 
[Kia-ting  Fu],  but  soon  afterwards,  Mr  Gray  Owen 
opened  a  China  Inland  Mission  station.  The  Roman 
Catholic  priests,  however,  have  long  resided  in  this  city, 
to  reach  the  thousands  of  heathen  pilgrims  who  pass 
through  annually  on  the  way  to  O-mei  Shan,  the  Mecca 
of  Buddhists  in  Western  China,"  ^ 

In  1854,  the  Abb6  Renou  obtained  a  perpetual  lease 
of  Bonga,  a  small  valley  in  the  hills  adjoining  the 
Lu-kiang  on  its  eastern  bank.  ''The  missionaries  of 
Bonga,"  says  Colonel  Yule,  "cleared  a  good  deal  of 
land,  erected  buildings,  and  began  to  have  considerable 
success  in  making  converts,  both  among  the  wilder 
tribes  of  the  hills  and  among  the  Tibetan  villagers 
around  them."  They  were  violently  ejected  in  1858, 
reinstated  in  1862,  again  ejected  in  1865.  MM. 
Desgodins  and  F.  Biet  were  allowed  to  carry  off  their 
flock  into  Chinese  territory,  but  their  establishment  was 
sacked  and  burnt  29th  September  1865. 

MM.  Durnand  and  A.  Biet  were  driven  away  from 
Kie-na-tong  (in  Yunnan),  and  the  former  was  shot 
In  January  1867,  M.  Desgodins  managed  to  send  a 
letter  to  the  British  Resident  at  Katmandu,  by  an 
envoy  of  Maharaja  Jung  Bahadur,  then  passing  through 
to  the  Court  of  China.  The  Governor-General  of 
India,  replying  to  the  Resident's  communication, 
observed,  among  other  things: — "If  the  Govern- 
ment may  be  permitted  to  ofler  an  opinion  to  men 
animated  by  higher  considerations  than  those  of  mere 
personal  security  or  success,  these  reverend  gentlemen 
would  do  well  to  abandon  the  country  in  which  their 
sufferings  have  been  so  great,  and  settle  in  British 
India,  where  there  are  extensive  and  peaceful  tracts, 
such  as  Lahoul,  Spiti,  and  Kulu,  containing  a  semi- 
Tibetan  population,  likely  to  receive  Christianity  with 
favour."  Of  four  copies  of  this  letter,  sent  by  different 
routes,  three  are  known  to  have  miscarried,  and  it  is 

^  The  Prmnnces  of  WesUm  Chitia^  19069  Mrs  Pruen,  C.I.M.,  p.  6a 


280  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

doubtful  whether  the  fourth  ever  reached  its  destina- 
tion.^ 

In  185s,  the  Abb6  Desgfodins,  in  order  to  avoid  the 
great  expense  and  detour  of  the  journey  via  the  ports 
and  interior  of  China,  tried  to  go  to  his  mission  via  British 
India.  Failing  to  negotiate  admission  to  Tibet  by  the 
Sikkim  frontier,  he  and  M.  Bernard  proceeded  to  the 
North-west  provinces,  to  attempt  an  entrance  via 
Simla  and  the  Sutlej.  The  priests  were  at  Agra  in 
1857,  when  the  mutiny  broke  out,  and  spent  the  summer 
in  the  fort  there,  with  the  rest  of  the  "sahib-log." 
Continuing,  after  the  relief,  on  his  journey,  M.  Desgodins 
was  recalled,  and  ordered  to  join  his  mission  by  the  more 
usual  route.  In  the  hot  weather  of  1858,  he  was  at 
Agra,  doing  duty  as  Roman  Catholic  chaplain  to  the 
British  force  at  Jhansi.  From  there  he  wrote  to  his 
parents: — "You  will  think  I  am  going  to  become  a 
regular  Croesus  when  I  tell  you  that  the  Government  of 
John  Bull  gives  me  for  my  services  as  military  chaplain 
800  francs  a  month,  or,  as  they  say  here,  320  rupees. 
.  .  •  However,  when  you  know  the  state  of  things  in 
India,  and  the  prices,  it  is  no  small  matter  to  make  both 
ends  meet;  so  my  dear  nephew  must  not  count  on  a 
fortune  from  my  savings.  Moreover,  I  hope  not  to  be 
long  in  John  Bulls  service,  but  soon  to  be  able  to  join 
my  mission;  I  shall  feel  richer  there  with  next  to 
nothing,  than  here  with  my  800  francs."* 

Receiving  a  fresh  summons  from  Bishop  des  Mazures, 
he  took  his  departure — receiving  about  1000  rupees  for 
his  services  with  the  army.  During  his  journey  to  the 
interior  of  China,  he  was  arrested,  imprisoned,  anc!  sent 
back  to  Canton.  Starting  again  under  a  new  disguise, 
he  finally  reached  the  residence  of  the  Bishop,  near  the 
frontier  of  Tibet,  in  June  i860,  five  years  after  his 
departure  from  France.* 

^  Memoir  of  Captain  Gill^  ubisupra^  pp.  97-8-9. 

>  Quoted  by  Colonel  Yule,  from  La  Mission  du  Thibet^  p.  36. 

'  Memoir  of  Captain  Gill^  ubi  si^ra^  pp.  1 13-4. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  281 

Colonel  Yule,  deprecating  sarcastic  comparison 
between  Catholic  and  Protestant  missions,  remarks :  "  I 
spent  many  years  in  a  Roman  Catholic  country  without 
feeling  in  the  least  degfree,  that  attraction  to  the  Roman 
Church  which  influences  some — indeed  I  might  speak 
much  more  strongly.  But  it  is  with  pleasure  and  rever- 
ence that  one  contemplates  their  labour  and  devotion  in 
fields  where  these  are  exercised  so  much  to  the  side  of 
good,  and  where  there  is  no  provocation  to  intolerance 
or  to  controversy  except  with  the  heathen ;  no  room 
for  the  display  of  that  spirit  which  in  some  regions  has 
led  the  priests  of  this  Church  to  take  advantage  of 
openings  made  by  others  to  step  in  and  mar  results  to 
the  best  of  their  power  "^ — in  other  words,  to  insist  on 
the  divine  commission  to  the  Catholic  Church  to 
teach  all  nations,  those  of  the  West  included ! 

In  1876,  Captain  Gill  "arrived  at  Tzu-Liu-Ching, 
where  no  foreigners  had  been  before  except  French 
missionaries."* 

"The  Romanist  missionaries  one  sees  but  little  of," 
wrote  Mr  Consul  Medhurst,  in  1872,  "although,  as  com- 
pared to  the  Protestants,  their  name  is  legion.  Their 
system  is  to  penetrate  deeply  into  the  interior  the 
moment  they  arrive,  to  disassociate  themselves  entirely 
from  the  mercantile  classes  of  foreigners,  and  to  work 
disguised  as  natives,  unobtrusively  and  unremittingly, 
at  the  various  stations  which  have  been  occupied  by 
them  for  years;  in  some  cases  for  centuries.  Their 
devotion  is  as  remarkable  as  their  success  has  been 
astonishing,  and  I  am  one  of  those  who  believe  that 
they  have  been  the  means  of  accomplishing,  and  still  do 
accomplish  a  vast  amount  of  good."* 

"  I  have  the  honour  to  enclose,"  said  Mr  Wade  to 
Earl  Granville,  24th  October  1870,  "translation  of  a 
proclamation  which,  according  to  the  Prince  of  Kung's 

^  Memoir  of  Captain  Gill^  ubi  supra^  pp.  122-3. 

>  The  River  of  Golden  Sand^  1883,  Captain  William  Gill,  R.E.,  p.  98. 

'  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathay^  1872,  W.  H.  Medhurst,  p.  33. 


282  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

promise,  already  reported  to  your  Lordship,  the  Chinese 
Government  is  about  to  publish  in  every  province  of  the 
Empire.  .  .  .  We  shall  learn  from  the  Romish  mission- 
aries to  what  extent  the  paper  is  really  circulated."^ 

Of  Yiinnan-fu,  Mr  Colquhoun  tells  us,  in  1883  : — "  I 
could  there,  I  anticipated,  meet  with  the  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  and  appeal  to  them  for  aid,  which 
I  was  prepared  to  do  with  perfect  confidence,  although  not 
of  their  religfious  persuasion,  for  I  knew  something 
already  of  the  kindly  and  generous  manner  in  which 
they  ever  receive  the  hapless  traveller."* 

Concerning  the  province  of  Hunan,  we  learn  that  in 
1892,  ''the  only  foreigners  resident  in  it  are  a  small 
garrison  of  Roman  Catholic  Fathers  who  have  held  the 
fort  a  few  li  from  the  city  of  Heng-chow-Fu,  for 
between  the  last  two  and  three  hundred  years.  .  .  . 
Of  Protestant  missionaries,  many  have  visited  it,  or 
crossed  it, but  of  persevering  workers  in  it,  it  has  had  but 
three.  First  in  the  order  of  time,  myself,  Mr  Chi,  a  humble 
member  of  the  tribe  of  peripatetic  sellers  of  good  books. 
Then  Messrs  Wu  and  Li,  two  gentlemen  connected 
with  the  China  Inland  Mission.  They  spent  many 
years  in  hard,  self-denying  effort  to  find  some  place, 
no  matter  how  insignificant,  where  they  might  be 
allowed  to  live  and  attempt  settled  work,  but  without 
success.  Mr  Li  lost  heart  and  left  the  mission-field ;  but 
Mr  Wu  persevered  until  he  died  two  years  ago  in  a 
boat"' 

Seven  years  later.  Lord  Charles  Beresford  tells  us, 
"the  Province  of  Hunan,  though  very  rich,  and  the 
people  very  well-to-do,  is  the  most  anti-foreign  in  China. 
Foreigners  who  penetrate  into  Hunan,  even  with  the 
help  of  the  Mandarins,  by  means  of  a  military  escort, 
do  so  at  the  risk  of  their  lives.    This  I  was  told  by 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1871,  p.  222. 
>  Across  Chrys^^  1883,  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun,  voL  L,  p.  269. 
'  The  Anti-Foreign  Riots  in  China  in  1891,  1892  {North    China 
Herald  Office),  pp.  267-8. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  283 

missionaries,  and  a  gentleman  who  barely  escaped.  In 
the  year  1897  an  Engflish  missionary  named  Sparham 
went  as  far  as  Hengchau  [in  Central  Hunan,  on  Siang 
Kiang  River].  There  has  been  a  French  Mission  in  this 
place  for  over  a  hundred  years,  and  Mr  Sparham  saw  the 
cross  on  their  chapel,  but  he  was  not  allowed  to  land."^ 

So,  the  Catholic  missionaries  in  China,  as  elsewhere, 
have  evidently  taken  to  heart  their  Master  s  command 
to  "go"  and  teach;  being  content  to  face  the  risks  of 
so  doing.  Nor  do  they  appear  to  regard  these  risks 
with  too  great  apprehension.  Indeed  Mr  Frederic 
Balfour  could  say,  in  1876,  that  "one  of  their  weakest 
points  is  an  undue  and  quite  unreasonable  love  of 
persecution  •  .  .  they  seem  to  enjoy  being  maligned, 
and  to  positively  luxuriate  in  being  beaten."*  Perhaps 
they  had  not  entirely  forgotten  the  words  of  Jesus 
Christ: — "Blessed  are  ye  when  they  shall  revile  you, 
and  persecute  you,  and  speak  all  that  is  evil  against 
you,  untruly,  for  my  sake;  Be  glad  and  rejoice,  for 
your  reward  is  very  great  in  heaven.  For  so  they 
persecuted  the  prophets  that  were  before  you."'  And 
thus  they  may  not  have  been  so  unreasonable  after  all ! 

In  any  case,  the  French  missionaries  of  the  Catholic 
Church  have  had  no  reason  to  apply  to  themselves  the 
taunt  of  "a  heathen  Chinaman  in  Chu-ki  a  few  years 
ago,"  recorded  for  us  by  Archdeacon  Moule  : — "  If  you 
Englishmen  believed  your  religion,  you  would  have 
been  here  long  ago."* 

We  may  now  proceed  in  order  of  time.  In  1847, 
Mr  Fortune  found  that  the  Roman  Catholic  mission- 
aries "do  not  restrict  themselves  to  the  out-ports  of 
the  Empire  where  foreigners  are  permitted  to  trade, 
but  penetrate  into  the  interior,  and  distribute  them- 

^  The  BrBoh-up  cf  China^  1899,  Loi^<l  Charles  Beresford,  p.  171. 

>  Wcdfs  and  Strays  from  the  Far  East^  1876^  Frederic  Henry 
Balfour,  p.  117. 

'  Matt  V.  11-12. 

«  Missions  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society^  The  China  Mission^ 
1902,  Yen.  Arthur  £•  Moule,  B.D.,  p,  4. 


284  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

selves  all  over  the  country.  One  of  their  bishops,  an 
Italian  nobleman,  resides  in  the  province  of  Keang-soo, 
a  few  miles  from  Shanghai,  where  I  have  frequently 
met  him.  He  dresses  in  the  costume  of  the  country, 
and  speaks  the  language  with  the  most  perfect  fluency. 
In  the  place  where  he  lives  he  is  surrounded  by  his 
converts,  in  fact  it  is  a  little  Christian  village,  where 
he  is  perfectly  safe,  and  I  believe  he  is  seldom,  if  ever, 
annoyed  by  the  Chinese  authorities. 

When  new  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  arrive, 
they  are  met  by  some  of  their  brethren,  or  the 
converts,  at  the  port  nearest  their  destination,  and 
secretly  conveyed  into  the  interior,  the  Chinese  dress 
is  substituted  for  the  European,  their  heads  are  shaved, 
and  in  that  state  they  are  conducted  to  the  scene  of 
their  future  kbours,  where  they  commence  their  study 
of  the  Chinese  language,  if  they  have  not  learned  it 
before,  and  in  about  two  years  they  are  able  to  speak  it 
sufficiently  well  to  enable  them  to  instruct  the  people. 
These  poor  men  submit  to  many  privations  and 
dangers  for  the  cause  they  have  espoused,  and 
although  I  do  not  approve  of  the  doctrines  they  teach, 
I  must  give  them  the  highest  praise  for  enthusiasm  and 
devotion  to  their  faith.  European  customs,  habits,  and 
luxuries,  are  all  abandoned  from  the  moment  they  put 
their  feet  on  the  shores  of  China;  parents,  friends, 
home,  in  many  instances  are  heard  of  no  more ;  before 
them  lies  a  land  of  strangers,  cold  and  unconcerned 
about  the  religion  for  which  they  have  sacrificed  every- 
thing ;  and  they  know  that  their  graves  will  be  far  away 
from  the  land  of  their  birth  and  the  home  of  their  early 
years.  They  seem  to  have  much  of  the  spirit  and 
enthusiasm  of  the  first  preachers  of  the  Christian 
religion,  when  they  were  sent  out  into  the  world  by 
their  divine  Master,  to  'preach  the  Gospel  to  every 
creature,'  and  to  *  obey  God  rather  than  man.' "  * 

^  Three  Yeari  Wanderings  in  the  North  Provinces  of  China^  1847, 
Robert  Fortune,  pp.  193-4-5. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  285 

In  1862,  a  Chaplain  to  the  Forces  discourses  on  the 
Jesuit  Mission  at  Zei-kei-wei,  which  he  says  "  is  about 
seven  miles  from  Shangfhai,  and,  little  as  I  like  the 
folk,  it  is,  I  must  admit,  most  creditable  to  them 
.  .  .  you  left  the  place  with  the  impression  that  the 
work  was  well  done,  little  as  you  might  like  the  doers 
of  it,  who  were,  nevertheless,  as  civil  and  obliging  as 
they  could  be ;  but  one  loses  some  of  one*s  religious 
animosities  living  in  a  heathen  land.  Our  good 
General  even,  who  has  all  the  instinctive  horror  of 
'holy  water*  which  a  strictly  religious  Scotchman  is 
likely  to  have,  could  not  refuse  the  aspersorium  at  the 
funeral  of  French  officers  at  Pekin,  and  to  sprinkle 
the  coffins  of  the  departed  with  his  own  hand."^ 

An  American  gentleman  who  left  New  York  in  July 
1866,  and  appears  to  have  been  in  China  in  1867, 
informs  us  that  "to  be  benefited  by  travel,  time  must 
be  taken  for  study  and  reflection.  .  .  A  person  had 
better  remain  at  home  than  go  round  the  world  in 
ninety  days.  A  year  is  little  time  enough.  Eighteen 
months  would  be  far  more  profitable.  .  .  ."*  He  him- 
self was  away  two  years  and  five  months,  and  has  given 
us  the  result  of  his  "study  and  reflection"  on  the 
Catholic  Church  in  China.  "The  difierence  in 
ceremony  between  the  religion  of  the  Chinese  and 
that  of  the  Catholic  Church  is  so  slight,  that  the 
Roman  Church  finds  it  easy  to  make  converts. 
Incense,  candles,  and  lamps  are  always  burning  before 
the  idols  of  the  temples,  just  as  before  the  altars  of 
Rome.  The  priests  appear  in  yellow  robes,  recite 
prayers  in  concert,  or  responsively,  with  such  intona- 
tions as  are  heard  in  St  Peter's.  Paper  flowers  adorn 
the  altars,  and  there  is  bowing,  kneeling,  passing  from 
left  to  the  right,  from  right  to  left,  as  in  the  Catholic 

1  Haw  we  got  to  Pekin^  1862,  Rev.  R.  J.  L.  M'Ghee,  Chaplain  to  the 
Forces,  pp.  41-2. 

>  Ow  New  Way  round  the  World,  1883,  Charles  Carleton  Coffin, 
p.  510. 


286         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

ceremonial.  A  Chinaman  entering  a  Protestant  church 
sees  no  images  or  pictures,  and  he  comes  to  the  con- 
clusion that  the  Protestants  are  altogether  godless ;  but 
he  enters  a  Jesuit  [Catholic]  church,  and  sees  a  better 
class  of  images  than  those  he  is  accustomed  to  worship, 
and  pictures  more  beautiful  than  those  upon  the  walls 
of  his  own  temples.  Romish  priests  are  more  gorgeously 
arrayed  than  those  who  minister  at  the  altar  of  Buddha, 
and  he  inhales  sweeter  incense  than  that  ascending  from 
joss-sticks.  The  music  of  the  choir  and  the  deep-toned 
organ  is  more  pleasing  than  the  rub-a-dub  of  drums. 
Is  it  any  wonder  that  the  churches  are  thronged  at 
morning  Mass,  or  at  the  hour  for  vespers  ?  A  gentle- 
man at  Shanghai,  who  speaks  the  language,  has 
travelled  through  several  of  the  provinces  dressed  as 
a  Chinaman,  and  has  had  excellent  opportunities  for 
observation,  says : — '  Of  the  missionary  effort  put  forth 
in  China,  at  least  90  per  cent,  is  by  the  Catholics.' " 

The  converts  thus  made  appear  to  take  matters 
rather  seriously,  as  we  learn  from  the  same  source : — 
**  They  are  baptised,  required  to  attend  Mass  and  the 
Confessional  [whether  they  find  gorgeous  vestments, 
incense,  and  music  in  the  latter  we  are  not  told],  and 
contribute  to  spread  the  Gospel.  They  must  abjure 
all  their  old  idols,  but  may  worship  Mary  and  the 
Saints."^ 

A  little  later,  the  same  gentleman  is  at  Poyang,  on 
the  Yang-tse,  where  "  we  stroll  through  the  suburbs,  and 
reach  the  grounds  belonging  to  the  Roman  Catholics, 
who  have  a  church,  convent,  and  other  buildings. 
French  priests,  wearing  the  costumes  of  the  Chinese, 
adapting  themselves  to  the  habits  and  customs  of 
those  whom  they  are  seeking  to  convert,  are  moving 
about  the  premises,  superintending  workmen  who  are 
hammering  stone  for  a  new  edifice."* 

Of  Peking,  in  1869,  and  the  usual  exodus  to  the 

^  Our  New  Way  rwmd  the  World,  pp.  358-9. 
•  IHd^  p.  372. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  287 

hills  from  June  to  October,  Professor  Parker  notes 
that  the  Catholic  missionaries  invariably  remained  in 
Peking  with  their  flocks,  and  dressed  in  Chinese  clothes, 
"  pigftail "  included.* 

In  1870,  Rev.  Alexander  Williamson  tells  us : — "  We 
look  upon  their  work  as  an  element  of  good  in  China — 
[he  is  speaking  of  the  Catholic  missionaries].  With 
all  their  paraphernalia,  there  is  reason  to  believe  that 
they  teach  the  great  cardinal  truths  of  our  common 
faith,  and  not  unfrequently  I  have  been  rejoiced  to 
find  Christ  and  His  atonement  set  forth  as  the  great 
basis  of  a  certain  hope.  .  .  .  There  is  one  great  objec- 
tion to  them.  They  manifest  no  intelligent  zeal  for 
the  enlightenment  and  elevation  of  the  people.  ...  As  a 
rule  they  content  themselves  with  superintending  native 
priests  and  catechists,  and  other  purely  official  duties. 
They  never  preach  or  publish  any  books.  They 
establish  schools  wherever  they  can,  and  take  pains 
through  native  teachers  to  instruct  the  boys  in  the 
catechism,  and  also  in  a  variety  of  trades ;  but  there  is 
no  effort  made  to  diffuse  information,  enlighten  the 
mind,  arouse  generous  impulses,  and  turn  out  well- 
informed,  truth-seeking  men  and  women.  They  make 
good  artisans,  but  that  is  the  sum  of  their  results. 
And  the  only  difference  between  them  and  their  heathen 
neighbours  is  that  they  are  good  Mass-hearing  shoe- 
makers, or  whatever  their  calling  may  be"^ — which 
was  precisely  the  difference  the  Catholic  Church 
sent  her  missionaries  to  China  to  effect;  and  better, 
possibly,  than  instruction  in  English,  the  natives 
proficient  in  which  seem,  according  to  Mr  Williamson 
himself,  to  have  been  "generally  great  rogues."* 

Later  on.  Father  Leng  is  met  with — a  native  priest 
who  had  been  trained  in  Rome.     He  "  knew  something 

^  China  past  and  present^  1903,  Professor  Edward  H.  Parker,  p.  93. 

*  Journeys  in  North  China^  1870,  Rev.  Alexander  WilliamsoD,  B.A., 
vol.  i.,  pp.  25-6. 

*  Ibid.^  p.  19a 


288  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

of  Latin  and  Italian,  and  appeared  in  other  respects 
intelligent.  He  declined  a  Testament  which  we  offered 
to  him,  sayingf  that  he  had  a  Latin  Bible,  and  a  transla- 
tion of  it  into  Chinese  which  he  had  himself  prepared."  ^ 
And  the  Catholic  missionaries  seem,  on  occasions,  to 
teach  the  Gospel  too,  as  Mrs  Pruen  tells  us  that,  when 
holding  Bible  classes  she  found  ''  some  of  the  women 
know  the  Gospel,  having  heard  it  from  the  Roman 
Catholics."^ 

"At  Tz-Coo,  on  the  Lan-Tsan-Kiang  or  Mekong 
River,"  says  Mr  Cooper,  in  1871,  *'we  were  warmly 
greeted  by  the  French  Fathers  Biet  and  Dubernard, 
missionaries  of  the  station.  .  .  .  The  history  of  the 
Tz-Coo  mission  may,  from  the  date  of  its  establishment, 
be  traced  in  the  blood  of  numbers  of  brave  and  noble- 
minded  missionaries  who  have  fallen  by  poison  or  the 
knife  in  the  cause  of  their  religion.  Self-banished  to 
this  country  without  a  hope  of  return,  the  French 
missionaries  have  worked  on,  and  in  spite  of  massacres 
by  the  savages,  incited  by  the  implacable  hatred  of  the 
Chinese  mandarins,  which  even  now  drives  them  to 
seek  protection  in  the  mountain  fastnesses,  their 
devotion  has  been  rewarded  by  hundreds  of  genuine 
converts."*  During  the  East  Tibetan  revolt  of  1905-6, 
we  learn  that  Pdres  Mussot  and  Souli6  were  both 
arrested  and  decapitated.  Pdre  Dubernard  and  Pdre 
Bourdonnec  were  also  murdered.* 

At  Ta-Li-Fu,  in  1876,  Captain  Gill  encounters  P^e 
Leguilcher,  who  had  remained  in  the  province  during 
all  the  war  and  bloodshed  of  the  Mahometan  rebellion, 
"and  his  life  during  this  time  would  form  a  thrilling 
narrative  of  hardship  and  adventure.  Once,  he  took 
refuge  in  a  wood,  where  he  built  himself  a  hut  of  small 
trees ;  after  a  time  he  discovered  they  were  cinnamon 

>  Journeys  in  North  CAina^  p.  307. 

3  The  Provinces  of  Western  China^  1906,  Mrs  Pruen  (C.I.M.),  p.  7i- 
*  Travels  of  a  Pioneer  of  Commerce^  187 1,  T.  T.  Cooper,  pp.  309,  312, 
The  Tinus^  loth  August  1908. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  289 

trees,  and  he  used  to  vary  his  diet  by  eating  his  house. 
At  another  time,  he  had  taken  refuge  in  the  mountains 
with  fifty  or  sixty  Christian  families.  After  a  battle,  a 
band  of  the  defeated  party  came  his  way,  and  would 
have  robbed  or  murdered  them,  but  he  bought  the 
good-will  of  the  chief  with  an  old  pistol  and  ten  percus- 
sion caps.  .  .  .  He  came  himself  to  welcome  us  to  Ta- 
Li-Fu,  and  his  friendliness  and  geniality  were  more 
like  those  of  an  old  friend,  than  the  first  words  of  a 
stranger."^ 

"The  missionaries,"  wrote  Mr  Margary,  in  1876, 
"have  a  fearful  task  in  attempting  to  convert  the 
Chinese.  The  difficulty  of  the  language  is  an  obstacle, 
and  the  simplicity  of  their  services  is  less  likely  to 
attract  the  sensuous  Chinese  than  the  magnificent 
cathedrals  and  gorgeous  ritual  of  the  Roman  Catholics. 
Some  of  the  Roman  missionaries  deserve  success. 
They  dress  in  the  native  costume,  and  travel  about  the 
country  for  years  and  years,  putting  up  with  the  Chinese 
dirt  and  Chinese  food,  in  a  way  which  to  a  European 
must  be  a  sort  of  martyrdom.  We  want  as  missionaries, 
educated  gentlemen,  free  from  narrow-mindedness,  and 
possessing  a  bearing  which  will  command  respect  from 
foreigners.  There  are  some  such  among  our  mission- 
aries.  * 

Part  of  this  want,  at  any  rate,  appears  to  have  been 
supplied.  "The  Catholic  missionaries,  again,'*  Mr 
Balfour  assures  us,  in  the  same  year,  "are  one  and  all 
picked  men;  and,  in  most  instances,  gentlemen  of 
culture  and  breeding.  They  are  highly  proficient  in 
science,  and  their  accomplishments  are  all  devoted  to 
the  great  end  they  have  in  view." ' 

"  The  Franciscans,"  writes  Mr  Consul  Alabaster,  in 

1  T^  River  cf  Golden  Sandy   1883,  Captain  William  Gill,  R.E., 

pp.  251-2-3. 

*  Journey  of  Augustus  Raymond  Margary^  1876^  from  journals  and 
letters,  p.  2. 

"  Waifs  and  Strays  from   the  Far  East^   1876,  Frederic    Henry 
Balfour,  pp.  115-6. 

T 


290         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

his  Report  on  the  Trade  of  Hankow  for  1883,  "confine 
their  chief  operations  to  the  neighbourhood  of  the  port, 
where  they  have  now  a  strong  position ;  the  prudence 
of  their  directors,  their  noble  charities,  avoiding,  on  the 
one  hand,  sources  of  irritation,  and  winning  them  the 
respect  and  kindly  feeling  of  both  the  authorities  and 
people."^ 

Travelling  in  Yun-nan,  in  the  same  year,  Mr 
Colquhoun  happens  upon  P^re  Terrasse,  whom  he 
dismisses  with  the  brief  remark,  "  banished  for  life  from 
la  belle  France^  * 

During  the  winter  of  1884-s,  Professor  Parker 
"visited  the  late  Bishop  Garnier,  and  most  of  the 
following  Jesuit  establishments:  (i)  Central  residence 
at  Siccawei,  Chinese  college,  Chinese  news  agency,  etc. ; 
(2)  Chinese  orphanage  and  printing  press  close  by  at 
Tusewei ;  and  the  Chinese  girls'  school,  female  doctors* 
school,  women's  asylum,  etc.,  of  Sengmujru ;  also,  the 
Chinese  hospital  at  Tungkadu,  south-east  of  Shanghai ; 
the  enormous  '  Eurasian '  girls'  schools  at  Shanghai ;  the 
Chinese  boys'  schools  at  Hongkew  (American  Shang- 
hai); and  Chinese  hospital  within  the  city  walls.  .  .  . 
The  work  done  is  enormous,  and  when  I  say  that  there 
are  nearly  nine  hundred  Jesuit  stations  in  Kiang  Nan 
(zl^.,  Kiang  Su  and  An  Hwei),  each  with  a  chapel ;  over 
three  hundred  Chinese  boys'  schools,  and  four  hundred 
Chinese  girls'  schools;  and  that  Pagans  as  well  as 
Christians  are  educated,  I  lay  stress  in  my  own  mind 
not  so  much  on  the  ghostly  as  on  the  mundane  benefits 
conferred."  The  Jesuits,  "  who  compel  veneration  and 
respect  in  China  by  the  sheer  force  of  their  erudition 
and  self-denial,"  have  "the  good  sense  to  discern  that 
the  Chinese  intellect  demands  their  very  best  men. 
Lest  it  be  supposed  that  I  have  a  bias  against  my  own 
countrymen,  and  their  'average*  religion,  I  may  just 
casually  add  that  the  China  Inland  Mission,  which,  like 

1  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (4),  1884,  p.  86. 

*  Across  Chrysd^  1883,  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun,  vol  il,  p.  268. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  291 

the  other  two  [Missions  Etrangires,  and  the  Society 
of  Jesus],  works  in  Chinese  clothes,  has  always  impressed 
me  as  doingr  excellent  medical  and  lay  work,  and  as 
coming  nearest  among  the  Protestants  to  St  Paul's 
standard  Personally,  and  for  the  sake  of  political 
peace,  I  should  like  to  see  the  China  Inland  Mission 
and  the  Jesuits  absorb  all  other  rivals,  and  to  have 
them  left  in  chargre  of  all  Chinese  Christians  as  friendly 
rivals."^ 

"Valuable  educational  work,"  wrote  Dr  Fortescue 
Fox,  in  1884,  "is  being  carried  on  at  Hankow,  and 
other  places ;  and  as  regards  the  French  hospitals  and 
medical  charities,  these,  so  far  as  the  writer's  observa- 
tion went,  are  well  administered  and  much  appreciated."  ' 

In  1885,  Major  Knollys  is  on  board  a  steamer  on  his 
way  up  the  Yang-tze,  and : — "  I  notice  a  tall  Chinese 
figure  seat  himself  at  the  table,  very  humbly,  very 
quietly/'  This  turns  out  to  be  P^re  Gannier,  "a  Jesuit 
priest  who  has  devoted  himself  to  a  missionary  life  in 
China.  .  .  .  'And  how  long  do  you  expect  to  remain 
out?'  I  ask.  '  Taute  ma  vie^  Monsieur,'  with  a  rather 
melancholy  smile.  ..."  I  have  left  for  ever  all  who  are 
near  and  dear  to  me.'  '  What  a  sacrifice,'  I  involuntarily 
exclaim.  *Yes,'  he  assented,  'and  yet  I  feel  perfectly 
happy,  and  without  a  vestige  of  regret.  But  I  admit 
this  is  an  unnatural  kind  of  happiness,  and  can  only  be 
attained  by  divine  grace.' "' 

At  Zic-a-wei,  the  Major,  after  noting  the  existence 
of  an  "observatory  of  such  excellence  as  to  supply 
foreign  shipping  with  valuable  astronomical  and  nautical 
data,"  assists  at  the  Catholic  rite  of  Benediction,  con- 
cerning which  the  following  reflections  suggest  them- 
selves:— "Oh!  the  strange  sight,  partly  solemn,  partly 
burlesque,  and,  must  I  add,  partly  painful,  through  its 

^  John  Chtnaman  and  a  few  others,  1901,  E.  H.  Parker,  pp.  197-8, 
200. 

*  Observatums  in  China,  1884,  Fortescue  Fox,  M.B.  (London),  p.  39. 
^  English  Idfe  in  China,  1885,  Major  Henry  Knollys,  R.A.,  pp.  121-2, 


292        THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

theatrical  insincerity."  There  is  somethingr  wrongr 
about  the  officiatingr  priest,  "dignified  and  devout  as  he 
seems.  .  .  .  Why — yes — ^my  heart  alive!  he  is  a  genuine 
John  Chinaman  dressed  up  in  all  the  simulacra  of 
Roman  Catholic  prelacy."  The  "Chinese  choristers, 
who,  thouarh  not  equal  to  St  Margaret's,  West- 
minster, have  been  tuned  out  of  their  wonted  national 
yelping."^ 

After  animadverting  upon  the  Catholic  religion  as 
"  Buddhism,"  and  the  "expediency"  system  of  conver- 
sion "  pursued  by  Jesuit  missionaries,"  Major  Knollys 
observes  that  "  it  is  an  act  of  simple  justice  to  acknow- 
ledge the  self-sacrifice  of  those  Jesuit  [ue..  Catholic] 
priests  who,  for  ever  abandoning  their  country  .  .  . 
living  and  dsring  amongst  their  flocks,  speaking  their 
language,  sharing  their  vicissitudes,  and  participating 
in  their  interests,  they  become  in  time  one  of  themselves, 
and  acquire  a  hold  unattainable  by  any  other  means."' 

In  a  Report  of  a  Journey  in  South-west  China,  Mr 
Bourne  observes  that  "  I  was  most  hospitably  received 
by  the  missionaries  of  the  Missions  Etrangires  of 
Paris,  as  indeed  wherever  that  Society  is  represented. 
The  worthy  Fathers  forgot  all  differences  of  nationality 
and  religion  in  their  cordial  hospitality  to  a  fellow 
European.  The  Cur6  of  Tsun-i,  P^re  Bodinier,  had 
only  just  returned  after  his  expulsion  during  the  Franco- 
Chinese  war.  Little  did  I  think  that,  within  three 
months,  the  Father  would  be  again  a  prisoner,  with  half 
the  population  shrieking  for  his  blood,  and  numbers  of 
his  converts  murdered  before  his  eyes."* 

In  1888,  Mr  James,  after  giving  an  outline  of  the 
history  of  the  Mission  of  Manchuria  from  1620, 
mentions  that,  in  1838,  Mgr.  Verrolles,  the  first  Bishop  of 
Manchuria,  was  appointed  from  the  Sechuen  Mission, 
and  suffered  unheard-of  difiiculties  and  privations  on  his 
journey   across   China.      "There   were   no  churches^ 

1  English  UJe  in  Ckina^  pp.  I94-5-  *  ^^^  P*  203. 

3  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1S88,  p.  77. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  2»8 

schools,  or  priests'  houses,  and  the  only  assistance  on 
the  spot  was  a  Chinese  priest  called  Hsii.  The  Bishop 
lost  no  time.  Without  even  providing  himself  with  a 
pied  d  terrey  he  travelled  through  the  length  and 
breadth  of  his  vast  diocese,  ministering  to  the  spiritual 
wants  of  his  flock  as  best  he  could" 

Commenting  on  the  last  letter  of  P^re  de  la  Bruni^re 
— ^who  was  murdered — ^and  P^re  Venault's  account  of  a 
journey  in  search  of  him,  four  years  later,  Mr  James 
says  that  ''  these  interesting  documents  testify,  if  any 
testimony  were  wanting,  to  the  true  Christian  courage 
and  devotion  of  these  men  of  God — a  devotion  shared 
by  their  successors  at  the  present  day.  .  .  .  P^e 
Venault  was  by  birth  a  nobleman,  born  in  1806,  in  the 
diocese  of  Poictiers.  As  a  young  man,  he  was  a  courtier 
of  the  Restoration ;  but  he  gave  up  the  world  for  Christ, 
was  ordained  priest,  and  embarked  for  Manchuria.  For 
forty-two  years  he  laboured  there  without  intermission, 
devoting  his  whole  private  fortune  to  the  work,  building 
churches  and  orphanages,  relieving  the  sick  and  needy, 
and  ever  refusing  to  live  better  or  more  comfortably  than 
the  poorest  of  his  flock.  He  died  on  12th  January 
1884,  the  most  truly  and  worthily  venerated  Apostle  of 
the  Faith  in  Manchuria."* 

The  year  1889  found  Mr  Pratt  on  his  way  to  Tibet 
via  China.  "  The  devotion  of  the  French  missionaries 
in  general  to  the  cause  of  their  religion  deserves  notice," 
says  he.  "  No  work  is  too  hard  for  them,  no  living  too 
poor.  They  are  not  deterred  by  epidemics  of  sickness, 
or  by  threatened  massacre.  They  have  simply  devoted 
their  lives  to  the  propagation  of  their  religion,  and 
nothing  can  turn  them  from  their  purpose.  Much  they 
have  done,  but  much  more  remains  to  be  done ;  and  it 
struck  me  forcibly  during  my  travels,  that  they,  above 
all  others,  are  the  most  determined  that  it  i^AoZ/be  done."' 

1  The  Lang  Wkiis  MauntMn^  1888,  H.  £.  M.  James,  pp.  197-8. 
>  To^  Snows  of  Tibet  through  China^  1892,  A.  £,  Pratt,  F.K.G.S., 
p,  136- 


294         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

j^>  Mrs  Howard  Vincent,  who  was  in  China,  as  would 

(  seem,  about    1890,  thoug^ht   that  the  success  of  the 

I    Catholic  missionaries,  "  in  comparison  with  other  sects, 

\   may  perhaps  be  attributed  to  the  fact,  that  their  ritual 

\  and  gaily  decorated  churches  are  more  attractive,  and  in 

accordance  with  the  Buddhist  rdigfion  and  temples  ;  but 

it  must  also  be  said  that  the  priests  go  amongst  the 

people,  adopt   their   life,  and  wear   Chinese   clothes, 

including  the  pigtail.    Aided  by  the  nuns,  they  minister 

to   the   temporal   wants   of    the    population    as  well 

as  the  spiritual."^ 

The  year  1891  is  memorable  for  the  anti-foreign 
riots  that  took  place,  to  which  a  series  of  publications — 
the  "Hunan  Tracts,"  the  authorship  of  which  was 
traced  to  one  Chou-Han,  an  "expectant"  official,  by 
Rev.  Dr  Griffith  John,  a  Protestant  missionary — 
powerfully  contributed.  As  a  specimen  of  the  possi- 
bilities of  missionary  life  in  China,  the  following  extracts 
from  accounts  sent  to  the  North  China  Herald,  by  Rev. 
John  Walley,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Mission  at 
Wuhu,  and  others,  may  serve  its  purpose. 

May  19,  Sunday.  Two  Chinese  Sisters,  connected 
with  the  Jesuit  Mission,  are  said  to  have  spoken  kindly 
to  two  children ;  and  this  led  to  the  taking  of  the  Sisters 
and  the  children  before  the  authorities.' 

The  French  missionary  reports  that  the  Sisters  were 
accused  of  having  drugged  the  children,*  in  order  to 
stupefy  them,  and  take  away  speech  and  hearing,  that 
they  might  steal  them  and  send  them  to  Shanghai.^ 
The  Chinese  official  decided  that  the  prisoners  should 
be  set  at  liberty  as  soon  as  the  use  of  speech  was 
restored  to  the  children. 

In  the  course  of  Monday,  the  children  had  no 
patience  to  obey  any  longer  the  orders  they  had 
received;    they  spoke,   and   thus  relieved  the  Cheh- 

1  Newfoundland  to  Cochin  China,  1892,  Mrs  Howard  Vincent,  p.  287. 
<  The  AnH'Foreign  Riots  in  China  in  1891,   1892,  North  China 
NeruidOmct,  p.  11.  '  I^id.,  p.  19.  «  IHd.,  p.  11. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  295 

sien  from  his  engagement.^     The  Sisters  were  then 
released. 

On  Tuesday,  the  Jesuit  mission — which  had  got 
along  in  peace  for  three  years — ^was  visited,  and  the 
graves  violated.  Bodies,  too  much  decomposed  to  be 
recognised,  were  declared  to  be  Chinamen  cut  up  by 
foreigners.  Whereupon  the  Jesuit  Mission  was 
burned.* 

On  Wednesday,  the  proceedings  were  terminated  by 
the  arrival  of  three  Chinese  men-of-war,  which  "fired 
a  broadside  or  two  which,  with  the  aid  of  a  good  shower 
of  rain,  quickly  scattered  the  people."' 

A  placard  has  been  posted  up  in  Wuhu  since  the 
riot  to  this  effect : — "  Only  the  Roman  Catholic  church 
is  to  be  destroyed,  but  do  not  touch  the  Customs.  If 
you  injure  the  Customs,  you  will  not  escape  the  arm  of 
the  law.     Know  and  remember  this."  * 

Says  Rev.  Mr  Walley : — "  True,  we  have  plenty  of 
soldiers  sent  from  different  parts  to  protect  us,  but  this 
is  not  reassuring,  when  we  know  that  part  of  the 
prisoners  taken  with  booty  in  their  hands  during  the 
riot  were  these  same  protectors  with  their  uniform 
turned  inside  out."* 

The  thoroughness  and  efficiency  with  which  the 
rioters  at  I-Chang  did  their  work  has  already  been 
mentioned.  They  destroyed  everything  of  a  foreign 
origin  they  could  lay  their  hands  on,  as  Mr  Consul 
Everard  has  told  us.  To  descend  from  the  terrible  to 
the  ridiculous,  we  now  learn  that  in  the  riots  at  I-Chang, 
"the  mandarins  seemed  to  receive  some  rough  usage, 
the  Chentai  s  hat  being  knocked  off,  an  indignity  of 
which  the  natives  speak  with  bated  breath,  and 
evidently  consider  of  more  gravity  than  anything  else 
which  has  occurred."* 

At  Wu-Chang,  on  13th  September,  the  Governor 

^  Ana-Foreign  RiotSy  pp.  19,  20.  *  Ibid.^  pp.  11,  19. 

'  Ibid.^  p.  12.  *  IMd.^  pp.  23-4. 

Ibid,^  p.  13.  *  IMd.^  p.  42. 


296  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

issued  a  proclamation  stating  that,  by  Imperial  direction, 
anyone  inciting  to  violence  would  instantly  be  put  to 
death,  and  offerings  a  reward  pf  lOO  taels  for  information 
on  the  subject.  ''This  invocation  of  the  masric  of  the 
Imperial  name,  and  the  offer  of  a  reward  so  larg^e,  lai^^er 
than  an  individual  share  of  any  possible  loot,  ougfht  to 
do  a  Sfood  deal  towards  the  maintenance  of  order."  ^ 

Perhaps,  also,  it  is  in  noway  surprising^  to  learn  that 
"the  poor  villagers  dreaded  a  visit  from  the  Imperial 
troops  even  more  than  from  the  rebels."* 

Coming  to  the  year  1895,  Mr  Norman  testifies  to 
the  Catholic  missionary,  as  he  heard  of  him.  "The 
Roman  Catholic  missionary  goes  to  China  once  for 
all;  he  adopts  native  dress,  lives  on  native  food, 
inhabits  a  native  house,  supports  himself  on  the  most 
mes^re  allowance  from  home,  and  is  an  example  of  the 
characteristics  which  are  as  essential  to  the  Eastern  idea 
of  priesthood  as  to  the  Western — poverty,  chastity,  and 
obedience.  To  borrow  the  words  of  Sir  W.  Hunter, 
'  He  has  cut  himself  off  from  the  world  by  a  solemn 
act'  More  than  that,  he  meets  native  superstitions 
half-way,  by  amalgamating  the  worship  of  ancestors, 
which  is  a  vital  part  of  every  Chinaman's  belief,  to 
the  worship  of  the  Saints ;  and  by  teaching  his  native 
converts  a  prayer  for  the  Emperor  of  China,  which 
concludes  with  the  petition,  de  Le  conserver  jusgu'i^ 
une  heureuse  vieillesse,  en  prolaneeant  la  prosperity  de 
Son  Empire,  a  fin  que  nous  puissions  pliUard  jouir  avec 
Lui  de  la  paix  itemelle.  He  is  also  subject  to  one 
authority,  and  preaches  and  practises  one  doctrine. 
The  two  chief  grounds  of  reproach  against  him  are, 
first,  that  in  China,  as  elsewhere,  he  is  nearly  always  a 
political  agent;  and  second,  that  many  a  dangerous 
suspicion  has  been  aroused  by  his  habit  of  paying 
small  sums  for  dying  children,  for  the  purpose  of 
baptising  them  in  articulo  mortis.  To  anyone  who 
has  read  my  chapter  on  Manila,  I  need  not  explain 

*  AnU'FarngH  Riots,  p.  55.  «  Wd,^  p.  95. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  297 

that  I  am  not  prejudiced  in  favour  of  Roman  Catholic 
propaganda ;  yet  I  should  not  be  honest  if  I  did  not 
add  that,  for  the  personal  character  and  the  work  of 
many  a  Roman  Catholic  missionary,  whom  I  have  met 
in  China,  I  have  conceived  a  profound  respect."  ^ 

In  the  same  year,  1895,  there  were  riots  in 
Sz'Ch'wan.  We  have  already  seen  in  what  a  workmanlike 
manner  they  were  conducted  in  Chentu — the  provincial 
capital.  We  further  learn  from  Mrs  Archibald  Little, 
who  was  there: — "The  Roman  Catholic  Bishop,  the 
last  to  escape  to  the  Yamen,  had  been  sufficiently 
roughly  handled  by  the  mob,  as  his  attire  and  bearingf 
showed.  He  had  stayed  at  his  post  to  the  very  last. 
It  was  clear  it  was  to  the  very  last,  if  he  were  to  escape 
at  all.  .  .  •  The  Roman  Catholics  seem  to  have  had 
over  forty  stations  destroyed  in  this  province.  Yet  not 
a  Frenchman  has  left  the  West.  'Pasunf  Nipaur 
cause  de  maladies,  ntpour  affaires  particuliires,  nipour 
aller  d  Peking  !  Pas  un  seul,  says  the  Procureur  some- 
what proudly.  Four,  however,  among  them  one  a 
Count  at  home  in  France,  had  been  driven  away  from 
their  stations  in  those  distant  parts  beyond  the 
Chienchang  Valley,  and  so  effectively  that,  for  forty 
days  they  had  to  fly  over  mountain  passes  and  by  little 
trodden  paths  till  they  found  a  refuge  at  last  only  across 
the  border,  in  the  capital  of  Yunnan,  Yiinnanfu  •  .  . 
other  priests  have  been  taking  refuge  in  Chinese  huts,  in 
yamens,  moving  from  place  to  place,  but  not  one  has  left 
his  post,  but  for  these  four  driven  out  of  the  province."* 

The  same  was  the  case  in  other  parts.  The  late 
Mrs  Bishop  ''wrote  home  after  the  conclusion  of  the 
operations  in  Manchuria,  and  of  the  war  between 
China  and  Japan  : — '  The  Roman  Catholic  men  and 
women  all  remained  at  their  posts  at  Mukden  and 

^  PiopUs  end  PoUUcs  of  ike  Far  East,  1895,  Henry  Nonnan, 
pp.  304-5. 

*  The  Load  of  tk$  Blue  Gown,  1902,  Mrs  Archibald  Little,  pp. 
246-7-a 


298  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

elsewhere,*  Mrs  Bishop  was  too  large-minded  and 
sincere  to  deny  or  blink  the  fact  that  .  .  •  in  China,  at 
all  events,  most  of  them  despised  comfort  and  espoused 
poverty  for  Christ's  sake."  ^ 

The  year  of  the  Boxer  Rising  gives  a  further 
example  of  the  same.  At  Hsiao  Wei-Si  in  far- Western 
Yunnan,  Mr  Jack  meets  **  the  Abb6  Tintet,  the  French 
missionary  to  Tibet.  .  .  .  When  he  heard  such  news  as 
we  could  give  him,  including  the  order  of  the  French 
Consul  that  all  French  subjects  were  to  leave  Yunnan, 
and  we  invited  him  to  accompany  us,  he  replied  with  a 
nonpossumus,  on  the  double  ground,  that  he  could  not 
leave  his  flock  unprotected,  and  that  he  could  not 
move  in  any  case  without  orders  from  the  Bishop."  * 

1897  affords  us  the  benefit  of  Mr  Arnot  Reid's 
reflections,  made  on  his  journey  from  Peking  to  St 
Petersburg.  **  The  Roman  Catholic  missions  of  China 
are,  I  think,  more  successful,  or  at  all  events,  they  are 
less  unsuccessful,  than  are  the  Protestant  missions. 
The  Roman  Catholic  priest  lives  among  and  for  the 
people,  eats  the  same  food  and  suffers  the  same 
hardships.  The  Protestant  missionary  lives  an  alien 
life,  outside  the  spirit  of  Chinese  heart  and  feeling.  I 
hope  it  is  clearly  understood  that  I  am  not  blaming  the 
Protestant  missionary  for  that  .  .  .  there  remains  the 
fact  that  the  methods  of  the  two  Churches  are  entirely 
different.  The  reason,  of  course,  is  in  the  diflerent 
circumstances  of  a  celibate  and  a  non-celibate  clergy. 
The  married  Protestant  missionary,  with  a  wife  and 
children,  requires  a  cottage  and  a  pony  carriage,  or  its 
equivalent.  He  does  not  require,  as  the  gossip  of  the 
treaty  ports  suggests,  a  luxurious  villa  and  a  well- 
appointed  carriage ;  he  requires  and  asks  nothing  that 
is  not  necessary  for  the  healthy  maintenance  of  his 

^  The  Ufe  of  Isabella  Bird  {Mrs  Bishop\  1906^  Anna  M.  Stoddart, 
p.  302. 

*  The  Back  Blocks  of  China,  1904,  R.  Logan  Jack,  F.G.S.,  Hon.  LL.D. 
(Glasg.),  p.  172. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  299 

family  life.  But  yet,  to  the  Chinaman,  to  the  coolie 
whose  earninsrs  are  not  more  than  a  shilling  a  week,  the 
difference  in  the  attitude  of  the  two  Churches  is  great. 
I  do  not  see  how  the  Protestant  system  can  be  changed, 
but  I  do  see  that,  if  China  is  ever  to  be  Christianised, 
it  is  more  likely  to  be  Christianised  by  the  Roman 
Catholic  than  by  the  Protestant  method."^ 

In  his  account  of  the  siege  of  the  Legations  in  Peking, 
in  1900,  Rev.  Dr  Martin  remarks: — "Often  did  I 
converse  with  the  Catholic  missionaries  of  France,  and 
I  felt  irresistibly  drawn  to  them  by  their  spirituality  and 
devotion."* 

During  the  same  year — so  we  learn  from  the 
Shanghai  Mercury — a  Catholic  mission-station  between 
Tientsin  and  Peking  was  besieged  by  the  Boxers,  and 
held  by  the  "  Father  in  charge  "  and  his  converts.  A 
peremptory  message  was  sent  to  the  priest  that  "  the 
Catholics  must  all  surrender  or  be  utterly  exterminated. 
What  could  the  poor  fellow  do?  He  said  he  would 
surrender,  provided  the  natives  who  were  with  him 
were  allowed  to  scatter  among  the  villages.  The 
Chinese  agreed  to  this,  and  soon  the  foreign  priest 
found  himself  in  custody  in  General  Ma's  camp.  He 
had  not  been  there  long  before  the  Allied  Forces 
attacked  the  Chinese  fortified  camp.  In  the  confusion 
that  ensued,  he,  with  his  attendants,  managed  to  get 
into  the  foreign  lines  without  being  shot,  and  in  a  short 
time  reached  Tientsin,  where  he  now  is."  * 

"  I  think,"  said  Mgr.  Favier  to  Mrs  Archibald 
Little,  "12,000  Christians  have  lost  their  lives  [his 
Vicariate  was  Pe  Tche-li,  in  which  is  situated  Peking] — 
three  of  our  European  priests,  four  Chinese,  and  many 
of  our  Chinese  Sisters.  One  priest  hung  on  a  crucifix, 
nailed,  for  three  days  before  he  died."* 

^  Peking  to  Petersburg^  1897,  Amot  Reid,  pp.  78-9. 

«  The  Siege  in  Pekin^  1900,  W.  A  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  p.  103. 

*  The  Boxer  Rising^  1900  (reprinted  from  the  Shanghai  Mercury\  p.  86. 

*  Raundabtmtmy  Peking  Garden^  1905,  Mrs  Archibald  Little,  p.  ii. 


300         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Elsewhere,  Dr  Edwards  relates  the  manner  of  the 
death  of  Mgr.  Hamer,  Vicar- Apostolic  of  South- 
western Mongrolia,  as  given  by  P^re  Back.  "  Mgr. 
Hamer  was  taken  by  the  soldiers  to  To  To  Ch'engr, 
where  the  Mandarin  Li  delivered  him  over  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  his  soldiers.  The  latter  took  him  for  three 
days  through  the  streets  of  To  To,  everybody  being  at 
liberty  to  torture  him.  All  his  hair  was  pulled  out,  and 
his  nose,  fingers,  and  ears  cut  off.  After  this  they 
wrapped  him  in  stuff  soaked  in  oil,  and  hanging  him 
head  downwards,  set  fire  to  his  feet.  His  heart  was 
eaten  by  two  beggars."^ 

In  1904,  Lady  Susan  Townley,  on  an  expedition  up 
the  Yang-tze  Kiang,  tells  us  that  ''  Kwei-chow-fu  has, 
up  to  the  present,  enjoyed  the  reputation  of  being  a 
thoroughly  anti*foreign  place;  and  Mrs  Bishop,  the 
traveller,  was  stoned  there,  not  ten  years  ago.  .  .  . 
The  only  missionary  in  the  place  is  an  old  Roman 
Catholic  priest  belonging  to  the  Missions  Etrat^ires 
de  Paris.  P6re  Roger  has  been  over  thirty  years 
in  China.  .  .  .  The  town  itself  is  much  like  any 
other  Chinese  town,  with  its  narrow,  foul-smelling, 
crowded  streets,  and  ruined  temples.  P^e  Roger's 
little  house  and  church  were  scrupulously  clean,  but 
very  poor.  He  told  us  that  he  had  over  thirty  Catholic 
families,  some  of  them  had  been  Christians  for  over 
two  hundred  years.  He  himself  was  dressed  like  a 
Chinaman,  and  lived  on  Chinese  fare;  he  speaks 
Chinese  perfectly.  .  .  .  He  lives  absolutely  alone  in 
their  midst,  with  no  European  intercourse  whatever, 
beyond  the  occasional  visits  of  fellow-missionaries,  or 
travellers  like  ourselves."  * 

''  I  also  paid  a  visit  to  P^e  Vaillemot,  who  has  been 
fifteen  years  in  Mukden,"  writes  Sir  Hubert  Jerningham 
in  1907,   ''and  speaks  Chinese  infinitely  better  than 

1  Fire  and  Swordin  Shandy  1903,  £.  H.  Edwards,  M.B^  CM.,  pp. 
106-7. 

<  My  Ckimu  Note  Baok^  19041  Lady  Sosaa  Townieyi  ppu  asi-a. 


THE  MISSIONARY  AT  WORK  301 

French,  his  native  tongue.  He  belongs  to  that  great 
missionary  institution  in  the  Rue  du  Bac,  in  Paris 
[Missions  Etrangires\  from  which  so  many  young 
priests  have  gone  forth  voluntarily  to  torture  and 
martyrdom,  in  the  cause  of  religion,  without  any 
expectation  of  ever  returning  to  their  native  land. 
What  this  expatriation  means  to  a  Frenchman  is 
enough  to  indicate  the  immensity  of  the  sacrifice  at 
the  start  of  life,  and  is  the  key-note  of  these  admirable 
mens  whole  existence."  The  good  Father's  church 
and  everything  had  been  destroyed,  and  he  was  hoping 
that  le  ban  Dieu  would  send  him  the  means  of  start- 
ing again  his  work  for  les  pduvres  petits  Chinois} 

It  only  remains  to  notice  the  Chinese  Catholic 
priests.  In  187 1,  M.  de  Hiibner — ^himself  a  Catholic — 
tells  us  that ''  the  Chinese  priests  all  belong  to  families 
converted  for  the  last  two  or  three  centuries.  No 
recent  convert  or  neophyte  is  admitted  to  the  priest- 
hood except  with  a  special  dispensation,  which  is  rarely 
asked  for,  and  still  more  rarely  granted.  The  native 
priests  are  firm  believers,  studious,  and  zealous ;  but 
they  are  not  energetic ;  they  are  timid  and  incapable  of 
direction.  .  .  .  With  regard  to  morals  they  leave 
nothing  to  be  desired.  They  have  never  yet  been 
promoted  to  the  higher  grades  of  the  hierarchy.  .  .  . 

The  pioneers  of  Christianity  are  the  catechumens. 
Going  from  village  to  village,  they  awaken  curiosity, 
answer  all  the  questions  which  may  be  addressed  to 
them,  and  often  leave  behind  them  the  seeds  of  conver- 
sion. Then  the  native  priests  come;  and  it  is  only 
after  the  ground  has  been  duly  prepared  that  the 
European  missionaries  arrive  to  complete  the  work 
by  opening  a  mission."  * 

1  From  West  to  Easty  1907,  Sir  Hubert  Jemingham,  K.C.M.G., 
p.  227. 

*  A  Ramble  round  th$  Worlds  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hubner,  vioL  ii., 
PP*  423-4. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME 

"Dr  Ellin  WOOD,"  we  are  told,  '*once  visited  a 
missionary  whose  field  of  labour  was  amid  equatorial 
heats,  and  whose  miserable  abode  was  directly  under 
the  tiled  roof  of  a  warehouse.  His  income  was  near 
the  starvation  point.  The  scant  dress  of  wife  and  child 
revealed  numerous  boils,  of  which  they  had  had  ninety, 
the  result  in  part  of  defective  nutrition  and  poverty  of 
blood.  He  notes  the  incident '  for  the  benefit  of  those 
well-to-do  Christians  who  think  that  self-immolation  is 
the  duty  of  the  foreign  missionary.'"^  Hence,  the 
Hon.  Secretary  to  the  Canterbury  Board  of  Missions 
does  not  **  ask  for  ascetics,  or  celibates  under  vows,  or 
adopters  of  the  native  dress,  or  turners  of  the  formal 
prayer- wheel,  or  the  daily  celebrant,"  and  "there  was 
no  necessity  for  hair-shirts,  or  flagellations,  for  long 
ceremonies  or  retreats."  * 

Had  these  gentlemen  lived  some  centuries  earlier, 
they  might  have  visited  another  Missionary  who,  not 
only  lacked  the  "tiled  roof  of  a  warehouse,"  but  even 
"  where  to  lay  his  head." *  His  income  was  below  "  the 
starvation  point,"  as  the  incident  of  His  disciples  in  the 
corn-field  proved* — ^so  much  so,  indeed,  that  a  miracle 
was  necessary  to  satisfy  the  demands  of  the  tax- 
collector;*  while  His  wardrobe  was  so  "  scanty,"  that 

1  Ex  Orienigy  1891,  Edward  P.  Thwing,  M.D.,  Ph.D.,  p.  103. 
*  The  Gospel  Messagty  1896,  Robert  Needham  Cost,  LL.D.,  pp.  63-4. 
>  Matt.  viii.  2a  *  Matt  xiL  i.  *  Matt  xvii.  26. 

m 


THE  CATHOUC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      303 

it  was  left  to  the  charity  of  a  comparative  stranger  to 
provide  Him  with  a  winding-sheet.^ 

Nor  does  He  seem  to  have  disdained  "retreats,"  for 
He  prefaced  His  missionary  career  by  making  one  of 
forty  days.* 

The  precursor  of  that  Missionary  seems  to  have 
made  an  even  more  protracted  retreat — "was  in  the 
deserts  until  the  day  of  his  manifestation  to  Israel."^ 
His  wardrobe  was  also  "scanty"  : — "The  same  John 
had  his  garment  of  camel's  hair"* — one  of  those  very 
hair-shirts  for  which  the  modern  missionary  has  no 
use! — "and  a  leathern  girdle  about  his  loins:  and  his 
meat  was  locusts  and  wild  honey" — a  regimen  sugges- 
tive of  "defective  nutrition."  And  we  may  note  the 
blessing  on  the  devotion  of  which  such  asceticism  was 
but  the  outward  manifestation: — "Jerusalem,  and  all 
Judea,  and  all  the  country  about  Jordan"  went  to  hear 
him,  and  "were  baptised  by  him  in  the  Jordan  con- 
fessing their  sins."  ^ 

Dr  Lawrence  thinks  "  it  would  be  well  if  every  large 
mission  should  follow  the  example  of  the  Congregational 
Mission  in  North  China,  and  publish  explicit  sugges- 
tions as  to  what  a  family  should  bring."  ^  Our  Lord 
anticipated  the  Congregational  Mission,  and  though 
He  does  not  appear  to  have  contemplated  a  missionary 
with  a  family,  nevertheless  gave  "explicit  suggestions" 
as  to  the  outfit  of  the  missionary  himself: — "  Do  not 
possess  gold,  nor  silver,  nor  money  in  your  purses: 
nor  scrip  for  your  journey,  nor  two  coats,  nor  shoes, 
nor  a  staff;  for  the  workman  is  worthy  of  his 
meat."  ^ 

The  Apostles — ^the  pioneer  Catholic  missionaries — 
evidently  bore  their  Master's  instructions  in  mind. 
"Silver  and  gold  I  have  none,"  answered  one,  when 

1  Matt  xxviL  59.  '  Matt.  iv.  2.  ^  Luke  i.  80. 

*  Matt  ill.  4.  »  Matt.  iii.  5-6. 

•  Modem  Missions  in  the  East,  1895,  Edward  A.  Lawrence,  D.D., 
p.  139*  ^  Matt  X.  9-10. 


304         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

asked  for  alms.^  Another,  seemingfly,  possessed  only, 
one  cloak  ;'  and  "chastised  his  body"  to  "bring  it  into 
subjection"" — ^possibly  by  means  of  "flagellations," 
which  in  our  own  day  are  deemed  superfluous — and 
from  the  comprehensive  account  of  his  sufierings  seems 
to  have  thought  that  "  self-immolation  "  was  a  distinct 
part  of  a  missionanr's  duty,  including  as  it  did, 
watchings,  hunger,  nakedness,  and  many  fastings.^ 

The  Gentiles  of  our  time  would  appear  to 
share  the  same  opinion,  and  to  look  for  the  same 
characteristics  in  a  Christian  teacher  as  did  their 
predecessors.  And  sometimes  they  find  them: — "It 
is  but  just  to  say,"  remarks  the  late  Mrs  Bishop,  "that 
the  Chinese  appreciate  the  celibacy,  poverty,  and 
asceticism  of  the  Roman  clergy.  Every  religious 
teacher,  with  one  notable  exception,  who  has  made 
his  mark  in  the  East  has  been  an  ascetic,  and  when 
Orientals  begin  to  seek  after  righteousness,  rigid  self- 
mortification  is  the  method  by  which  they  hope  to 
attain  it."* 

Commencing,  then,  at  the  year  1869,  Professor 
Parker  tells  us  that  the  Catholic  missionaries  lived  a 
life  of  complete  seclusion.  "Many  of  them  being 
regulars,  or  following  analogous  rules,  it  is  sufiicient 
to  say  that  their  mode  of  life  is  just  what  it  would  be 
in  Europe,  except  that  they  wear  Chinese  clothes  and 
'pigtails' "•  At  Hankow,  he  found  them  living  "a 
humble  penurious  life,  feeding  chiefly  on  rice  and 
cabbage,  or  skinny  chickens."  The  Professor  visited 
the  Italian  priest  in  charge  of  the  Franciscan  Mission 
— in  his  own  words — "I  used  to  go  and  sit  with  him 
too.  He  wore  a  shabby  old  cassock  from  one  year  s 
end  to  the  other;  lived  on  about  ;^i  a  month;  took 
his  cigar  and  glass  of  wine,  or  any  other  good  things 

*  Acts  iii.  6.       "2  Tim.  iv.  13.       *  i  Cor.  ix.  27.      *  2  Cor.  xL  24-7. 

*  The  Yangtze  ValUy  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 

pi  I03. 

*  China  past  and  present^  1903,  Professor  Edward  H.  Parker,  p.  95. 


THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      305 

(when  he  could  get  them  for  nothingf),  and  never  spent 
a  cent  on  himself  if  he  could  not :  the  French  consul 
used  to  invite  all  Catholic  missionaries  to  breakfast  on 
Sundays.  All  this  self-denial  is  very  proper  and  nice. 
But  surely  it  does  not  follow  that,  because  one  man  is 
bound  by  the  rules  of  his  order  to  be  an  ascetic  and 
a  celibate,  others  who  start  out  on  quite  a  different 
basis  are  to  be  blamed  for  not  doing  the  same?"  ^  At 
Kewkiansf,  "  I  used  often  to  go  and  talk  with  the  old 
bishop.  He  used  to  smoke  his  cheap  Chinese  tobacco 
out  of  a  Chinese  copper  pipe :  the  interior  arrangements 
of  the  'palace'  were  of  the  simplest;  almost  as  severe 
as  those  of  a  Jesuit  establishment." ' 

At  Canton,  he  found  the  priests  of  the  Missions 
Birang-^res  ''live  as  frugally  and  simply  as  elsewhere. 
As  a  rule  devote  their  whole  lives  to  the  work  and 
never  go  home  .  .  .  are  apt  to  keep  aloof  from 
Europeans,  because  the  cathedral  lies  at  some  distance 
from  the  foreign  concession,  but  they  give  their  consul 
plenty  of  work."' 

In  1 87 1,  Mr  Cooper  informs  us  that  "the  pay  of  a 
missionary  varies  from  icx)  taels  per  mensem — the 
salary  of  a  bishop — to  20  taels,  the  scanty  stipend  of 
the  simple  fathers.  [A  tael  varies  from  2s.  sd.  to  3s.  3d. 
in  value.]  .  .  .  Out  of  this  they  provide  everything  .  .  . 
and  it  is  only  when  their  self-denying  and  abstemious 
mode  of  life  is  witnessed,  that  an  adequate  idea  can  be 
formed  of  real  mission  work."  * 

"The  inherent  dangers  of  the  apostolate  in  China 
are  well  known.  The  miserable  existence  of  the  sisters 
and  missionaries  is  less  so.  *  We  left  Europe  ten  years 
ago,'  said  one  missionary  to  me  [Baron  de  Hiibner — 
a  Catholic].  'Counting  the  six  sisters,  we  were 
twenty-four  in  all.  With  the  exception  of  four,  in- 
cluding myself,  all  the  rest  have  died    The  diplomats 

*  China  fast  and  present^  pp.  97-8. 

>  Jbid.^  pp.  99  and  loi.  *  IHd^  p.  loi. 

*  Travels  of  a  Pioneer  of  Cammerte^  1871,  T.  T,  Cooper,  pp.  124-5. 

U 


306  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

and  consuls/  he  continued,  'bear  their  residence  in 
China  well  enough.  The  great  mortality  among  the 
missionaries  cannot,  therefore,  be  attributed  to  the 
climate.  It  is  to  be  explained  by  the  very  hard  lives 
we  are  compelled  to  lead,  especially  from  the  Chinese 
food,  the  want  of  medical  help,  and  the  privations  of 
every  kind  to  which  we  are  necessarily  exposed.' "  ^ 

At  Pai-tzu  Pu,  Mr  Margary  tells  us,  in  1876,  "a 
Roman  priest  came  up  to  me  suddenly  as  I  was  seated 
at  one  of  the  public  tables  having  tiffin,  and  commencing 
in  Chinese  continued  in  French,  that  he  was  travelling 
to  the  capital,  and  was  delighted  to  meet  a  foreigner. 
We  sat  down  together — but  my  reverend  friend  had  so 
poor  a  larder,  that  I  was  obliged  to  supplement  his  bit 
of  cold  fowl,  with  half  my  beef-steak,  and  he  was  so 
delighted  to  see  bread,  that  before  he  had  finished  his 
repast,  I  had  no  more  to  offer  him."* 

In  the  same  year.  Captain  Gill  arrived  at  Ch'ung 
Ch'ing  where,  besides  missionaries,  probably  not  more 
than  twenty  or  thirty  foreigners  had  ever  been.  He 
received  a  visit  from  Mgr.  Desfleches,  who  **told  us 
about  his  flock,  his  converts,  and  his  trials,  of  which  he 
made  very  light,  dreadful  though  they  had  been.  He 
praised  the  English  and  the  English  Government,  and 
declared  that  our  country  was  the  only  one  in  which 
there  was  any  real  religious  liberty.  He  naturally 
expressed  great  pleasure  that  war  had  not  broken  out 
between  China  and  England — *for,'  he  said,  'if  it  had, 
we  should  all  have  been  massacred  here.'  "• 

At  Ta-Chien-Lu,  the  boundary  of  China,  Mgr. 
Chauveau  is  fallen  in  with,  "this  noble-hearted  mission- 
ary," as  the  Captain  describes  him,  "never  at  a  loss 

1  A  Ramble  round  the  Worid^  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hiibner,  vol  tl, 
p.  425. 

>  Journey  of  Augustus  Raymond  Margary^  1876^  from  journals  and 
letters,  p.  229. 

>  The  River  of  Golden  Sand^  1883,  Captain  William  Gill,  R.E.,  pp. 
83-4. 


THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      307 

for  some  fresh  method  of  oblisfing  us."  He  had  lived 
thirty-two  years  in  China,  during  which,  "time  had  not 
dimmed  his  interest  in  European  affairs,  nor  his 
affection  for  his  country.  His  courtly  manners,  those 
of  a  nobleman  of  the  old  French  regime,  were  in  striking* 
contrast  to  the  wildness  of  his  surroundings,  and  would 
have  made  me  forget  that  I  was  on  the  borders  of  an 
almost  barbarous  country,  if  his  enthusiasm  for  the 
propagation  of  the  faith  had  not  kept  it  constantly 
in  view.  ...  A  few  short  months  elapsed,  and  he 
went  to  his  rest,  bitterly  mourned  by  his  faithful  little 
flock  in  those  far-away  regions,  and  deeply  regretted  by  all 
who  knew  the  nobility  and  grandeur  of  his  nature."^ 

Also  in  the  same  year  Mr  Frederic  Balfour  treats  of 
the  Catholic  missionary,  as  he  had  seen  him,  and  who 
he  says,  "has  renounced  all — ^home,  country,  friends, 
fortune,  nay,  even  his  own  identity — for  ever,  to  be 
Christ  to  the  perishing  and  poor.  His  faith  has  led 
him  to  follow  his  Master's  commandment  to  the  full, 
and  to  give  up  all  for  Him."' 

In  Sz'ch'wan — as  would  seem  about  1880 — Professor 
Parker  found  French  priests  o(th&  Missions £trangrires  in 
every  large  town,  and,  "as  I  travelled  thousands  of  miles, 
I  made  the  acquaintance  of  many  of  them.  In  every 
single  case  they  lived  on  a  pittance  varying  (at  present 
gold  rates)  from  £2  to  £z  a  month  per  man.  When  I 
say  that  their  houses  were  always  neat,  I  speak  com- 
paratively and  from  a  Chinese  point  of  view;  in  no  case 
was  the  'luxury'  greater  than  that  of  a  Jesuit  seminary 
in  England ;  in  some  cases  the  missionary  occupied  a 
purely  Chinese  house;  mud  floor,  straw  mat  for  bed, 
paper  windows,  no  'comforts'  of  any  description.  .  .  . 
The  Vicar-General  lived  just  as  simply  as  the  other 
priests.  .  .  .  They  never  dared  any  of  them  go  out-of- 
doors  except  in  closed  sedan  chairs :  the  people  were 

*  The  River  of  Golden  Sand^  1883,  pp.  179^  185-6. 
>  IVaift  and  Simys  from  the  Far  Easi^    18761  Frederic    Henry 
Balfour,  p.  115. 


308  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

most  hostile."  The  Professor  seems  to  have  been  the 
first  European  who  ever  walked  the  streets  regularly  in 
European  costume ;  other  lay  Europeans  had,  as  a  rule, 
thought  it  more  prudent  to  remain  indoors.^ 

Travelling  in  Manchuria,  during  1886,  Captain  (now 
Sir  Francis)  Younghusband  makes  the  acquaintance  of 
P^re  Raguit  and  P^re  Card,  at  Pa-yen-su-su.  "We 
recognised  immediately  that  we  were  not  only  with  good 
but  with  real  men.  What  they  possessed  was  no  weak 
sentimentality  or  flashy  enthusiasm,  but  solid  human 
worth.  Far  away  from  their  friends,  from  all  civilisa- 
tion, they  lived,  and  worked,  and  died ;  two  indeed  out  of 
the  three  we  met  in  those  parts  have  died  since  we  left. 
When  they  left  France,  they  left  it  for  good ;  they  had 
no  hope  of  return ;  they  went  out  for  their  whole  lives." 
Their  abode,  "a  plain  little  house  almost  bare  inside, 
and  with  stiff  simple  furniture  .  .  .  it  might  be  supposed 
that  these  missionaries  would  be  dull,  stern,  perhaps 
morbid  men.  But  they  were  precisely  the  contrary. 
They  had  a  fund  of  simple  joviality,  and  were  hearty,  and 
full  of  spirits.  They  spoke  now  and  then  with  a  sigh 
of  la  belle  France,  but  they  were  evidently  thoroughly 
happy  in  their  lives  and  devoted  to  their  work."  * 

Also  in  Manchuria,  Mr  James  could  say,  in  1888 : — 
"  The  example  set  by  the  priests  is  very  fine.  They  live 
lives  of  the  greatest  austerity  and  self-denial — their 
rooms  cold  and  bare  of  comforts  as  the  entrance-hall  of 
a  work-house,  and  their  food  simple  and  plain.  They 
never  dream  of  taking  leave,  and  enjoying  themselves 
amongst  their  friends  at  home  for  a  year.  They  are 
exiles  for  the  whole  of  their  lives.  They  have  indeed 
forsaken  houses,  and  brethren  and  sisters,  and  father 
and  mother,  and  lands  for  Jesus'  name's  sake,  but  they 
rely  on  His  promise  that  they  shall  receive  an  hundred- 
fold, and  shall  inherit  everlasting  life."^ 

1  China  past  and  present,  pp.  Z03-4. 

>  Among  the  Celestials,  189S,  Captain  Francis  Younghusband,  C.I.E.,  pp. 
38-9, 40.        '  The  Long  White  Mountain,  1888,  H.  £.  M.  James,  p.  203. 


THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      309 

"  I  recollect  one  French  priest  in  a  most  remote 
village,"  wrote  Mrs  Archibald  Little  in  1899,  "showing 
me— half  excusing  himself,  half  proudly — ^his  one  great 
luxury,  a  little  window  with  glass  panes  he  had  put  in 
near  his  writing  desk,  so  as  to  see  to  read  and  write  till 
later  in  the  evening.  There  was  barely  a  chair  of  any 
kind  to  sit  on  in  his  large  barrack-like  room.  He 
showed  me  a  set  of  photographs  of  his  native  village  in 
France,  but  I  noticed  he  never  dared  glance  at  it 
himself  while  we  were  there.  We  were  the  first 
Europeans  to  visit  the  place  during  the  three  years 
he  had  been  there,  with  the  exception  of  an  old  priest, 
who  once  a  year  came  three  days'  journey  across  the 
mountains  to  see  how  he  was  going  on."  ^ 

A  year  or  so  later,  Mr  Rockhill  encounters  Mgr. 
F6lix  Biet  at  Ta-chien-lu,  who  "has  been  in  Tibet  for 
twenty-six  years,  and  though  still  a  comparatively 
young  man,  is  completely  broken  down  by  the  hard- 
ships he  has  had  to  endure.''^ 

At  Ta-tien-chih,  Mr  Pratt  found  P^re  Joseph 
Martin,  who  ''had  not  seen  a  European  since  Baber, 
eleven  years  ago  .  .  .  has  lived  in  the  neighbourhood 
for  many  years,  and  has  no  intention  of  ever  returning 
to  Europe  .  .  .  has  made  many  converts  and  is  much 
beloved  by  them."* 

Later  on,  P^re  Jeridot  is  discovered,  "  who  seemed 
from  his  emaciated  appearance  to  have  led  a  life  of 
great  privation,"  and  with  the  exception  of  the  Fathers, 
had  not  seen  a  European  for  thirteen  years:  while 
Mgr.  Biet  told  him — Mr  Pratt — of  a  missionary  '*near 
the  frontier  of  Yiinnan  who  had  seen  no  European,  but 
a  priest  at  long  intervals,  for  thirty  years."* 

"All  the  Roman  Catholic  missionaries,"  says  Mr 
Pratt,  "had  a  very  hard  life,  and  I  think  that  people 

^  InHmaU  Ckina^  1899,  Mrs  Archibald  Little,  pp.  163-3. 
'  The  Land  of  the  Lamas,  1891,  William  WoodviUe  Rockhill,  p.  272. 
^  To  the  Snows  of  Tibet  through  Chifia^  1892,  A.  E.  Pratt,  F.R.G.S., 
pp.  1 13-4.  ^  IHd^^.\<yj. 


810         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

at  home  have  very  little  idea  of  the  sacrifices  they  make 
for  the  sake  of  their  religion.  Beyond  having  cleaner^ 
and,  perhaps,  in  a  trifling  way,  better  houses  than  the 
natives,  there  is  no  difference  in  their  mode  of  life. 
They  seldom  see  civilised  people,  and  yet  have  done 
much  to  civilise  the  almost  savage  races  among  whom 
they  dwell  Their  food  is  coarse  and  often  scanty,  and 
their  lives  are  frequently  in  danger."  * 

"  Recognition  should  be  given,"  wrote  Colonel  (after- 
wards Sir  Howard)  Vincent,  '*to  the  general  respect 
entertained  by  foreigners  of  opposing  Christian  creeds, 
for  the  lifelong  devotion  to  their  task,  on  the  slenderest 
stipend,  of  the  Roman  priesthood.  Their  success  as  to 
numbers  is  also  said  to  be  much  aided  by  their  care  of 
the  mundane  interests  of  the  converted  who,  loath  to 
continue  subscribing  to  family  memorial  halls  for 
communication  with  ancestors,  etc.,  .  .  .  are  shunned 
by  their  kindred,  and  often  find  employment,  even  in 
foreign  families,  as  impossible  as  a  public  office."* 

And  Mrs  Howard  Vincent  reminds  us  once  more 
that  "  these  priests,  when  they  leave  France,  come  out 
for  life,  and  receive  only  lOO  taels  or  ;^20  a  year."' 

Concerning  Mongolia: — "I  reached  Hsin-ch*eng  at 
7- 30  P.M.,"  Mr  Rockhill  relates,  "and  got  a  warm 
reception  from  Father  van  Belle,  and  a  Friday's  meal 
-—cold  tea,  dry  bread  and  lard,  used  in  place  of  butter. 
This  is  the  usual  style  of  living  among  Catholic 
missionaries."^ 

'' Ichang,"  said  the  late  Mrs  Bishop,  ''is  the  head- 
quarters of  a  large  Roman  mission.  Its  head.  Bishop 
Berjamin,  with  whom  I  had  the  pleasure  of  spending 
one  afternoon,  has  been  sixteen  years  in  his  present 
position  without  even  a  visit  to  Shanghai.     His  large, 

1  To  the  Snows  of  Tibet  through  Chinoy  1893,  pp.  135-6. 

>  Newfoundland  to  Cochin  China^  1892,  in  appendix,  CoL  Howard 
Vincent,  C.B.,  M.P.,  p.  367. 

'  Ihidy  Mrs  Howard  Vincent,  p.  287. 

*  Diary  of  a  Journey  through  Mongolia  and  Tibet^  1894*  W.  W. 
Rockhill,  p.  61. 


THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      311 

lofty  room,  though  furnished  with  all  absolute  necessaries, 
is  bare  and  severe,  and  contains  nothing  on  which  the 
eye  can  pleasurably  rest.  The  Bishop  is  a  most  genial 
elderly  man,  with  much  charm  of  manner.  ...  As  we 
walked  down  the  lanes  to  the  orphanage,  numbers  of 
Chinese  children,  unmistakably  delighted  to  see  him, 
ran  up  to  him,  kissing  his  hands,  and  struggling  for 
positions  in  which  they  could  hold  on  to  his  robe.  .  .  . 
A  Belgian  priest,  who  called  on  me  .  .  .  depicted  in 
very  vivid  language  the  sufferings  of  educated  men 
from  the  deprivations  of  their  lives,  and  especially  from 
the  absolute  solitude  in  which  he  and  others  are  placed, 
living  in  one  room  of  low  class  Chinese  houses.  He 
was  obviously  a  man  of  much  culture  and  refinement, 
and  felt  the  whole  life  acutely — the  dark  and  filthy 
houses,  the  dirty  food,  the  unceasing  noisy  talk  in  a 
foreign  tongue,  the  lack  of  real  privacy  and  quiet,  the 
ingratitude  of  the  Chinese,  and,  more  than  all,  his  own  fail- 
ure to  love  them.  This,  though  my  first,  was  not  my  last 
glimpse  of  the  anguish  of  loneliness  which  these  Roman 
missionaries  endure.  '  Madness  would  be  the  certain 
result,*  my  visitor  said,  *  but  for  the  sustaining  power  of 
God,  and  the  certainty  that  one  is  doing  His  work.' " 

"Wherever  I  have  met  with  Roman  missionaries, 
I  have  found  them  living  either  like  Bishop  Benjamin 
and  Bishop  Meitel  of  Seoul,  and  like  the  Sisters  in 
Seoul,  Peking,  Ichang,  and  elsewhere,  in  bare,  white- 
washed rooms,  with  just  enough  tables  and  wooden 
chairs  for  use,  or  in  the  dirt,  noise,  and  innumerable 
discomforts  of  native  houses  of  the  lower  class, 
personally  attending  on  the  sick,  and  in  China,  Chinese 
in  life,  dress,  style  and  ways,  rarely  speaking  their  own 
language,  knowing  the  ins  and  outs  of  the  districts  in 
which  they  live,  their  peculiarities  of  trade,  and  their 
political  and  social  condition.  Lonely  men,  having 
broken  with  friends  and  all  home  ties  for  the  further- 
ance of  Christianity,  they  live  lives  of  isolation  and 
self-sacrifice,  forget  all  but  the  people  by  whom  they 


312         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

are  surrounded,  identify  themselves  with  their  interests, 
and  have  no  other  expectation  but  that  of  living  and 
dying  among  them."  ^ 

The  question  may  be  asked  here,  what  are  the  con- 
ditions of  life  in  a  Chinese  town  ?  Fortunately  our 
authorities  are  prepared  for  it,  and  have  provided  us 
with  abundant  information  as  to  the  state  of  things  at 
the  time  of  their  visit. 

We  will  commence  with  1861,  Dr  Lockhart: — 
"  Public  scavengers  of  any  kind  are  unknown.  Drains 
no  better  than  a  continuous  cesspool,  where  filth  of  all 
varieties  is  allowed  to  accumulate  and  pollute  the  air.  In 
truth,  were  it  not  that  the  high  market  value  of  ordure 
of  all  kinds  leads  to  the  employment  of  a  large  number 
of  men  and  boats  in  its  deportation  to  the  country  for 
agricultural  purposes,  the  health  of  the  city  [Shanghai — 
native  city]  would  be  seriously  deteriorated."* 

1884.  —  Report  of  a  Journey  through  Central 
Sz  chVan,  in  June  and  July,  by  Mr  Hosie  : — "  Now  that 
I  am  on  the  subject  of  Chinese  inns,  I  cannot  do  better 
than  give  a  Chinaman  s  own  ideas  on  the  point  It  is  the 
custom  of  those  who  can  write  to  scribble  verses  on  the 
walls  of  their  rooms.  These  verses  are  often  amusing, 
and  they  frequently  contain  plays  on  characters. 
Others,  again,  are  written  in  praise  of  the  inn ;  but  I 
found  one  to-day,  in  the  room  where  I  breakfasted,  so 
much  in  accordance  with  my  own  experience,  that  I 
cannot  refrain  from  reproducing  it  in  English  garb.  It 
should  be  mentioned  that  the  inn  was  decidedly  superior 
to  the  average.    The  verse  runs  thus : — 

Within  this  room  you'll  find  the  rats,  At  least  a  goodly  score. 
Three  catties  '  each  they're  bound  to  weigh,  Or  e'en  a  little  more. 
At  night  you'll  feel  a  myriad  bugs.  That  stink  and  crawl  and  bite  ; 
If  doubtful  of  the  truth  of  this,  Get  up  and  strike  a  light 

^  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond,  1899,  M»  J-  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
pp.  99-102. 

*  The  Medical  Missionary  in  Chinas  1861,  Wm.  Lockhart,  F.R.C.S., 
F.R.G.S.,p.37. 

^  A  catty,  about  i^  lbs.,  English. 


THfl  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      313 

There  may  be  a  little  exaggreration  of  weigrhts  and 
numbers,  but  the  lines  are  a  faithful  attempt  to  portray 
a  part  of  the  truth.  Had  the  author  gfiven  us  eight 
more  lines  on  mosquitos  and  odours,  the  picture  would 
have  been  tolerably  complete-"  ^ 

1888. — Mr  James,  Manchuria  : — "Since  1875,  rein- 
forcements have  arrived  in  large  numbers,  but  a  large 
proportion  [of  the  missionaries]  have  perished  from 
typhoid  fever,  caused  no  doubt  by  the  filth  of  the 
Chinese  cities  in  which  their  work  is  carried  on."  * 

1 895. — Mr  Norman  on  Peking,  as  he  saw  it : — "Above 
all  other  characteristics  of  Peking,  one  thing  stands  out 
in  horrible  prominence.  Not  to  mention  it  would  be 
wilfully  to  omit  the  most  striking  feature  of  the  place. 
I  mean  its  filth.  It  is  the  most  horribly  and  indescrib- 
ably filthy  place  that  can  be  imagined.  Indeed  imagina- 
tion must  fall  far  short  of  the  fact.  Some  of  the  daily 
sights  in  Peking  could  hardly  be  more  than  hinted  at  by 
one  man  to  another  in  the  disinfecting  atmosphere  of  a 
smoking-room.  There  is  no  sewer  or  cesspool,  public 
or  private  but  the  street ;  the  dog,  the  pig,  and  the  fowl 
— in  a  sickening  succession — are  the  scavengers ;  every 
now  and  then  you  pass  a  man  who  goes  along  tossing 
the  most  loathsome  of  the  refuse  into  an  open  work- 
basket  on  his  back ;  the  smells  are  simply  awful ;  the 
city  is  one  colossal  and  uncleansed  cloaca"^  Mgr. 
Favier  was  once  asked  how  a  population  could  resist 
cholera  while  living  in  Peking: — "Cholera,"  exclaimed 
the  Vicar- Apostolic,  "  it  could  never  enter.  It  would 
be  asphyxiated  at  the  gate ! "  ^ 

By  all  reports,  matters  have  improved  of  late  years 
— not  perhaps  before  improvement  was  needed.  Our 
concern,  however,  is  with  the  unsavoury  past,  in  which 
the  Catholic  missionary  has  laboured  for  centuries. 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (2)^  1885,  p.  10. 

'  The  Long  White  Mountain^  1888,  H.  £.  M.  James,  p.  199. 

3  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  Easi^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  pp.  209-10. 

*  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900^  Alexander  Michie,  vol.  ii.,  p.  144. 


814         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

1899. — Mrs  Bishop: — "The  mannerless,  brutal, 
coarse,  insolent,  conceited,  cowardly  roughs  of  the 
Chinese  towns,  igfnorant  beyond  all  description,  live  in 
a  state  of  filth  which  is  indescribable  and  incredible,  in 
an  inconceivable  beastliness  of  dirt,  amongf  odours 
which  no  existing  words  can  describe.  ...  I  wondered 
daily  more  at  the  goodness  of  people  who  are  mission- 
aries to  the  Chinese  in  the  interior  cities,  not  at  their 
coming  out  for  the  first  time,  but  at  their  coming  back, 
knowing'  what  they  came  to.  The  village  people  are 
quite  different,  and  doubtless  have  attractive  qualities ; 
and  it  must  be  admitted  that  Christianity  does  produce 
an  external  refinement  among  those  who  receive  it, 
which  is  very  noticeable."  ^ 

1900. — Hankow,  Miss  Scidmore  : — "  A  ride  through 
the  native  city  of  800,000  inhabitants  is  an  experience 
no  one  would  willingly  repeat.  While  Shanghai, 
Canton,  and  Amoy  run  rivalry,  and  imperial  Peking 
has  some  sloughs  and  slums  and  smells  unparalleled, 
Hankow  may  be  safely  entered  against  the  field."* 

In  the  same  year,  Mr  Savage* Landor  had  a  trifling 
experience  in  Shantung.  He  put  up  at  an  inn  in 
Fan-shan-pu,  where  the  smell  was  so  appalling  that  he 
remonstrated  with  the  inn-keeper,  who  replied  that 
something  must  be  wrong  with  his  guest's  nose,  as  he 
could  not  smell  anything.  During  the  night  Mr 
Savage- Landor  proceeded  to  investigate,  and  found 
that  the  nuisance  came  from  a  room  said  to  be 
"  occupied  by  three  Chinese."  So  it  was,  but  they  were 
dead;  and  had  been  so  for  eight  days.  Mine  host 
explained  that  they  had  "only"  died  of  small-pox,  and 
he  was  waiting  an  order  from  the  absent  mandarin  to 
have  them  removed.'  In  1904,  Mr  Consul-General 
Hosie    reported    on    the    province    of   Sz'Chwan : — 

>  The  Yangtze  Valley  ondBey&nd^  p.  25a 

'  China,  the  Limg-Uved  Empire^  1900^  Eliza  Ruhamah  Sddmore, 
p.  372. 

'  China  and  ike  Allies,  1901,  A.  Henry  Savage- Landor,  vol.  i.,  p.  320. 


THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME     316 

"  Ch'Sngrtu,  being  a  large  city,  supplies  large  quantities 
of  valuable  manure  to  its  immediate  surroundings,  and, 
although  the  buckets  are  covered,  the  stench  on  the 
streets,  especially  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  four 
gates,  is  absolutely  disgusting/*^ 

It  would  thus  appear  that,  when  China  starts 
County  Councils,  there  will  be  sundry  matters  requiring 
attention ;  so  we  may  close  this  unsavoury  digression 
on  the  incidentals  of  missionary  life  in  China,  and 
continue.  ^ 

**The  only  Jesuit  missionary  I  ever  met  inland," 
says  Professor  Parker,  "was  discovered  on  a  river 
steamer,  travelling  'deck'  amongst  the  Chinese 
passengers,  dressed  in  native  attire  of  course,  feeding 
on  rice  and  pork,  and  reading  his  Breviary  by  the  light 
of  a  faint  oil  lamp,  amidst  the  fumes  of  tobacco  and 
opium."*  The  Professor  apparently  proceeded  into 
Burmah,  and  as  he  included  his  experiences  in  his  work 
on  China,  we  will  do  so  too.  There  he  met  Father 
Cadoux.  ''In  1888  I  hunted  him  up  at  a  humble 
residence  in  the  jungle  outside  Bhamo.  ...  His  house 
was  a  kind  of  reed  hut,  total  value  perhaps  five  pounds  ; 
he  had  planks  laid  across  trestles  for  a  bed,  and  the 
only  furniture  consisted  of  a  couple  of  rough  chairs  and 
a  table.  He  entertained  me  with  a  *  swarry,'  consisting 
of  a  scraggy  chicken  and  red  rice.  The  bread  was  a 
'caution'  to  weak  digestions;  luckily  mine  was  strong. 
He  had  no  wine;  not  even  altar  wine.  In  1892.  He 
had  no  books  beyond  his  'exercises';  no  meat,  no 
wine,  no  drugs.  He  had  a  tiny  chapel  arranged  in  an 
adjoining  hut,  and  he  had  spent,  and  intended  to  spend, 
the  whole  of  his  strength  in  endeavouring  to  convert 
the  Kachyns.  ...  In  1894  I  learnt  from  a  French 
missionary  that  poor  Fadier  Cadoux  was  no  more: 
fever  and  starvation  had  done  their  work.'*' 

>  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (5),  1904,  p.  23. 

>  China  past  and  present^  p.  112. 

'  John  Chinantan  and  a  few  athirs^  1901,  £.  H.  Parker,  pp.  i94-S-^7* 


316  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  I907>  Rev.  Lord  William  Cecil  gives  us  a 
further  instance.  The  French  missionary,  he  tells  us, 
''has  been  the  first  amongf  those  who,  by  their  self- 
denyingf  lives,  have  shown  the  depth  of  their  belief  in 
the  truths  of  Christianity.  An  example  was  told  me  of 
this  by  the  wife  of  a  French  Consul.  She  was  on  the 
river  in  the  centre  of  China  when  a  man  came  on  board 
dressed  in  Chinese  dress,  so  that  till  she  saw  his  face, 
she  thought  he  was  a  coolie :  he  proved  to  be  an  old 
friend  whom  she  had  known  well  as  a  professor  of 
mathematics  at  the  Sorbonne.  He  had  become  a 
Jesuit,  and  they  had  sent  him  up  country  to  live 
exactly  like  a  Chinese  coolie.  I  think  they  allowed  him 
jCS  a  year  for  his  expenses ;  my  informant  asked  him 
how  he  managed,  for  he  was  far  from  being  by  nature 
suitable  for  such  a  life,  and  he  explained  that  as  he  had 
no  turn  for  cooking  or  anything  of  that  sort,  he  grew  a 
few  turnips  on  a  patch  of  ground,  and  lived  on  them 
and  on  rice.  Many  people  may  criticise  the  folly  of  the 
Jesuit  body  in  throwing  away  a  valuable  man  in  this 
extravagant  fashion,  but  no  one  can  fail  to  admire  the 
man  who  patiently  submitted  to  such  usage  for  con- 
science' sake.  Can  one  wonder  that  with  such  men 
the  Roman  missions  easily  lead  in  numbers  and 
influence  ?  "  ^ 

We  will  conclude  with  the  opinion  of  the  Inspector- 
General  of  Customs.  Speaking  at  the  opening  of ''  the 
great  Missionary  Exhibition  at  the  Leeds  Town  HaU 
promoted  by  the  Wesleyan  body,"  Sir  Robert  Hart 
said  that,  "  although  many  of  those  present  might  not 
agree  with  him,  he  could  not  omit  on  an  occasion  such 
as  this  to  refer  to  the  admirable  work  done  by  the 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries,  among  whom  were  to  be 
found  the  most  devoted  and  self-sacrificing  of  Christ's 
followers.  The  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  had  done 
great  work,  both  in  spreading  the  knowledge  of  one  God 
and  of  one  Saviour,  and  more  especially  in  their  self- 
^  T^  NoHamU  lUview^  December  1907,  pp.  570-1. 


THE  CATHOLIC  MISSIONARY  AT  HOME      317 

sacrifice  in  the  cause  of  deserted  children  and  afflicted 
adults.  Their  organisation  as  a  society  was  far  ahead 
of  any  other,  and  they  were  second  to  none  in  zeal  and 
self-sacrifice  personally.  'One  strong  point  in  their 
arrangements/  he  added,  'is  in  the  fact  that  there  is 
never  a  break  in  continuity,  while  there  is  perfect 
union  in  teaching  and  practice,  and  practical  sympathy 
with  their  people  in  both  the  life  of  this  world  and  the 
preparation  for  eternity.'  The  Roman  Catholics  were 
the  first  in  the  field,  were  the  most  widely  spread,  and 
had  the  largest  number  of  followers,  but  the  Protestant 
sects  in  China  had  done  very  well,  and  he  understood 
that  their  converts  now  numbered  as  many  as  200,000 
communicants."  * 

This  being  the  case  for  the  Roman  Catholic  mission- 
ary, it  has  only  to  be  remarked  that,  to  the  unprejudiced 
observer,  it  must  indeed  seem  inexplicable  that  Almighty 
God  should  have  given  that  missionary  the  grace  to  go 
to  China — ^as  he  has  gone  for  centuries — for  his  whole 
life ;  and  when  there  to  lead  the  life  of  apostolic  poverty 
and  simplicity  commanded  by  Christ  our  Lord,  and 
which  has  been  so  generously  and  ungrudgingly 
described  by  non-Catholics ;  and  yet  have  omitted  to 
purge  the  religion  he  professes  from  its  ''errors  and 
superstitions." 

1  The  Leeds  Mercury^  31st  October  1908. 


CHAPTER  III 

CATHOLIC  MISSIONS  FROM  ANOTHER  POINT  OF  VIEW 

Hitherto  we  have  chronicled  only  the  evidence  of 
those  who  readily  and  generously  acknowledged  that 
the  Catholic  missionary  was  doing  good  work,  even 
though  they  differed  from  the  form  of  Christianity  he 
taught.  We  have  now  to  do  the  same  by  those  who 
do  not  approve  of  his  work  or  himself.  We  follow,  as 
usual,  the  order  of  time. 

In  1869,  we  learn  from  the  late  Rev.  John  L.  Nevius 
that  "the  comparatively  large  number  of  converts 
connected  with  the  Romish  Church  is  readily 
accounted  for  by  the  length  of  time  during  which 
its  missions  have  been  prosecuted;  the  striking  re- 
semblance between  its  doctrines  and  rites  and  those 
of  Buddhism ;  by  the  fact  that  very  little  knowledge, 
or  evidence  of  change  of  heart  and  life  is  deemed 
requisite  to  Church  membership;  and  the  freedom 
accorded  to  native  converts  in  allowing  them  to  work 
on  Sunday,  and  to  conform  in  many  respects  to  the 
superstitious  practices  of  their  countrymen.  Their 
religion  consists  in  being  baptised,  and  attending 
regularly  to  the  Mass  and  the  Confessional,  and 
believing  that  their  souls  are  safe  in  the  keeping  of 
the  Church  and  the  priest.  In  order  to  participate  in 
the  benefits  conferred  by  the  Church,  they  are  taught 
that  they  must  abjure  all  connection  with  the 
worship  of  Chinese  gods,  and  never  deny,  on  pain  of 

eternal   punishment,    the   religion   which    they   have 
SI8 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW        319 

adopted.  The  result  is  that  they  sfenerally  keep  aloof 
from  the  idolatrous  worship  of  Buddhism  and  Tauism, 
bear  testimony  to  the  universal  duty  of  worshipping" 
one  God,  and  believing  in  one  Saviour,  and  will 
generally  adhere  to  their  religious  profession  to  the 
death.  But  in  renouncing  idolatry  as  taught  by 
Buddhism,  they  still  practise  it  in  another  form  .  .  . 
believing  in  works  of  merit,  of  supererogation,  exercis- 
ing blind  faith  in  their  religious  teachers,  etc.  .  .  .  That 
there  are  many  persons  among  the  missionaries  and 
converts  of  the  Romish  Church  in  China  who  are 
honest  and  sincere  in  their  religious  convictions  I  do 
not  doubt.  I  rejoice  to  hope  and  believe  that  the 
truth  of  God,  though  held  by  them  in  a  corrupt  form, 
and  with  a  large  admixture  of  the  commandments  of 
man,  has  by  the  blessing  of  God  been  the  means  of 
the  spiritual  regeneration  and  salvation  of  many."* 

In  his  revised  work  of  1883,  Dr  Wells  Williams 
thinks  ''there  may  have  been  true  converts  among 
the  adherents  to  Romanism."  This  seems  almost 
possible  in  the  light  of  what  the  Doctor  tells  us  on 
the  same  page  concerning  them: — "  .  .  .  Many  of 
their  converts  also  exhibit  the  greatest  constancy  in 
their  profession,  preferring  to  suffer  persecution, 
torture,  imprisonment,  banishment,  and  death  rather 
than  to  deny  their  faith,  though  every  inducement  of 
prevarication  and  mental  reservation  was  held  out  to 
them  by  the  magistrates,  in  order  to  avoid  the  necessity 
of  proceeding  to  extreme  measures.  If  undergoing  the 
loss  of  all  things  is  an  evidence  of  piety,  many  of  them 
have  abundantly  proved  their  title  to  this  virtue.  But 
until  there  shall  be  a  complete  separation  from  idolatry 
and  superstition;  until  the  confessional  shall  be 
abolished,  and  the  worship  of  the  Virgin,  wearing 
crosses  and  rosaries,  and  reliance  on  ceremonies  and 
penances  be  stopped ;  until  the  entire  Scriptures  and 
Decalogue  be  taught  to  the  converts,  until,  in  short, 

^  China  and  the  Chinese^  1869,  Rev.  John  L.  Nevius,  pp.  41 1-5. 


320  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  essential  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith  alone  be 
substituted  for  the  many  forms  of  justification  by 
works,  the  mass  of  converts  to  Romanism  in  China 
can  hardly  be  considered  as  much  better  than  baptised 
Pagans."^ 

Of  the  Catholic  missionaries:  —  "It  is  hardly 
possible  to  doubt,  when  reading  the  letters  of  these 
two  men  [P^e  Dufresse  and  P^e  Gagfelin],  both  of 
whom  were  martyred  for  the  faith  they  preached 
[1833],  that  they  sincerely  loved  and  trusted  in  the 
Saviour  they  proclaimed."* 

In  1884,  we  learn  from  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry — for  ten 
years  a  Protestant  missionary  in  Canton — that  "the 
priests,  of  whom  there  are  twenty  in  the  Province 
[Kwansr-tung],  all  adopt  Chinese  dress,  and  often 
penetrate  far  into  the  interior.  Some  of  them  are 
earnest,  self-denying  men,  submitting  to  hardship 
willingly,  and  spend  their  lives  in  toilsome  service  for 
others.  They  work  in  secret,  and  often  by  underhand 
means,  never  allowing  the  people  or  the  magistrates  to 
suspect  their  purpose  until  they  have  gained  their  ends. 
They  have  no  public  chapels  or  preaching  halls."  One 
of  their  "prominent  members"  appears  to  have  asked 
Mr  Henry's  permission  to  preach  in  his  chapel, 
"assuring  me  that  he  would  carefully  avoid  intro- 
ducing any  of  their  peculiar  tenets."  The  reason 
given  for  this  unusual  request  was  that  in  his  own 
church  "he  had  no  opportunity  of  proclaiming  the 
doctrine  he  believed."  We  further  gather  that  "the 
worship  of  saints  and  images  makes  it  an  easy 
transition  from  idolatry  to  the  practices  of  the 
Romish  Church.  Instances  are  given  where  the 
original  idol  is  retained,  but  is  christened  St  Joseph 
in  place  of  Kwang-Kung,  or  the  Holy  Mother  in  place 
of  Koon-yam.  .  .  .  Many  of  their  intelligent  people 

^  The  MiddU  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  Wells  Williams, 
LL.D.,  voL  ii.,  pp.  317-8. 
*  Ibid.^  vol  iL,  p.  317. 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW       321 

have  left  the  Church  which  closes  the  door  of 
knowledge,  refuses  the  Scriptures  to  the  people,  and 
hides  its  light  from  the  masses,  and  joined  the  Church 
of  Jesus.  .  .  .  Protestants  have  little  to  learn  from 
them,  and  less  to  fear;  while  admiring  the  courage 
and  self-sacrifice  of  many  devoted  men  who  have 
plunged  into  the  unknown  interior,  and  there  worn 
out  their  lives,  we  avoid  their  methods  and  appeal  to 
none  but  the  purest  motives  in  winning  men  for  Christ, 
still  trusting  that  in  the  flocks  gathered  by  these  self- 
denying  priests  there  may  be  many  who,  through  the 
imperfect  light  brought  them,  have  been  led  to  a  true 
knowledge  of  the  Lord  of  all,  and  Jesus  His  Son,  our 
divine  Redeemer."^ 

From  Rev.  Edwin  Joshua  Dukes,  missionary  of  Fuh- 
kien  (1885),  we  learn  that  "  it  needs  sometimes  a  great 
deal  of  discretion  to  avoid  giving  needless  offence  in 
speaking  of  idolatry  and  superstition.  As  a  rule,  there 
are  few  things  the  Chinaman  enjoys  more  than  to  have 
fun  poked  at  his  gods.  As  the  preacher  pictures  the 
absurdity  of  idolatry,  his  audience  laugh  till  they  hold 
their  sides,  and  shout,  'It  is  all  true.*  'Then  why  do 
you  worship  them  ? '  '  It  is  the  custom  of  our  ancestral 
land,  teacher.'  But  it  is  not  always  safe  to  be  so  plain, 
and  perhaps  it  is  seldom  wise  to  be  humorous.  Satire 
may  create  bitterness  towards  the  preacher,  and  defeat 
the  end  he  has  in  view."  Mr  Dukes  gives  an  experience, 
where  he  came  to  a  lonely  hut  among  the  hills.  **  Hear- 
ing voices  I  went  to  the  hut  door,  and  saw  that  it 
contained  only  two  persons,  a  man  whose  head  was 
being  shaved,  and  the  barber  who  was  performing  the 
operation.  After  greeting  I  went  in,  and  noticed  at  the 
end  of  the  room  a  large  heap  of  parts  of  idols.  Heads, 
legs,  arms,  were  piled  together  without  any  order.  The 
sight  struck  me  as  most  ludicrous,  and  I  began  to  say  to 
the  barber,  whom  I  took  to  be  the  tenant  of  the  house, 
that  he  should  try  how  this  head  would  look  on  that 

*  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C  Henry,  pp.  421-3,  425-6. 

X 


322  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

body,  or  this  leg  by  the  side  of  that  leg,  and  so  on.  I 
also  asked  him  whether  he  had  heard  the  proverb,  '  In 
these  generations  idol-makers  have  no  posterity.'  The 
barber,  a  jovial-looking  man,  joined  in  the  fun  till  the 
head  of  his  victim  seemed  to  be  endangered.  But, 
happening  to  look  the  latter  in  the  face,  I  saw  that  his 
eyes  were  flashing  fiercely,  his  teeth  were  set,  and  his 
hands  clenched.  In  a  moment  I  saw  the  mistake  I  had 
made.  I  had  been  speaking  to  the  wrong  man.  The 
solitary  repairer  of  idols  was  not  the  merry  barber,  but 
the  morose  and  passionate  man  sitting  on  the  box.  I 
did  my  best  to  apologise,  but  he  treated  me  very  coldly 
when,  three  days  after,  I  tried  to  speak  to  him  more 
soberly  on  the  same  theme."  ^ 

Apparently,  it  is  not  necessary  to  be  so  careful 
concerning  the  Catholic  Church,  e.g.y  "That  which 
strikes  the  visitor  most  is  the  marvellous  resemblance 
between  the  whole  of  it  [the  Buddhist  worship]  and  the 
Romish  mummeries  called  the  Mass  ...  all  these  recall 
most  vividly  the  services  of  the  Roman  Church,  and 
confirm  the  conviction  that  Romanism  is  not  so  much 
Christianity  degenerated  towards  Paganism,  but  rather 
Paganism  only  slightly  Christianised."^  He  might 
have  learned  a  lesson  from  his  own  experience  above 
related.  In  any  case,  he  received  another  one.  He 
narrates  that,  during  his  sermon  in  a  country  chapel,  a 
sedan-chair  stopped  at  the  door,  and  a  Chinese  gentle- 
man entered  from  it,  and  stood  by  the  side  of  the 
missionary.  At  the  end  of  the  discourse,  he  asked 
permission  to  speak,  and  gave  a  seven  minutes'  address 
of  approval  and  encouragement,  and  of  hope  in  Christi- 
anity alone.  After  the  subsequent  hymn,  he  vanished 
in  his  chair,  and  **we  saw  him  no  more.  From 
certain  modes  of  expression  we  guessed  he  was  a 
Cantonese  Roman  Catholic,  but  his  brief  visit  made  a 
great  impression  on  the  little  assembly."* 

^  Everyday  Life  in  China^  1885,  Edwin  Joshua  Dukes,  pp.  207-8-9. 
»  Ibid.^  pp.  193-4.  3  IHd^  pp.  213-4. 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW       323 

1887  affords  us  the  advantage  of  the  opinion  of  Rev. 
H.  C.  Du  Bose:— "The  traveller  who  notes  the  simil- 
arity between  these  two  great  systems  of  faith  and 
worship  must,  on  comparison,  conclude  that  Romanism 
is  Buddhism  prepared  for  the  foreign  market — Buddhism 
adapted  to  a  Western  civilisation."^ 

In  the  Province  of  Kiang-si,  in  the  year  1888,  it 
seems  that — according  to  Miss  Guinness,  of  the  China 
Inland  Mission — "the  devil  is  wide  awake  to  the  crisis, 
and  the  Church  of  Rome  is  not  indifferent.  Her 
attitude  is  powerful  and  advancing.  Here  in  this  very 
province  she  is  actively  seeking  to  make  headway,  and 
has  an  almost  incredible  number  of  young  people  in  her 
hands  in  various  schools  and  organisations."^  Later,  at 
the  end  of  some  observations  on  Buddhism,  we  find,  as 
we  might  have  expected : — "  Clearly  not  Buddhism  as 
understood  by  modern  writers,  but  Buddhism  as  under- 
stood and  practised  by  the  Chinese  people  and  priests  ; 
Roman  Catholic  in  its  ceremonial,  its  tonsure,  its 
rosary,  its  purgatory  and  priestcraft,  with  all  the  vain 
unmeaning  repetitions,  penance,  meritorious  works,  and 
mummery  of  paganised  Christianity,  including  the 
sacred  sect  of  shaven  celibates,  cut  off  from  all  natural 
affection  and  human  ties."' 

Concerning  this  resemblance  between  the  externals  of 
Catholicism  and  Buddhism  which,  according  to  all 
authorities,  is  really  very  striking.  Captain  Brinkley 
gives  the  following  simple  explanation :— "  Some  devout 
Catholics  have  accused  the  Devil  of  contriving  these 
resemblances  expressly  to  discredit  the  Holy  Church, 
but  it  is  easier  to  believe  that  the  eclective  liberality 
invariably  shown  by  Buddhism  when  brought  into 
contact  with  a  rival  creed,  is  answerable  for  similarities 
far  too  numerous  to  be  accidental."* 

^  Dragon^  Image  tmd  Denuniy  1887,  Rev.  H.  C.  Du  Bose,  p.  290. 

^  In  the  Far  East^  1889,  Geraldine  Guinness,  p.  134. 

>  IHiLy  p.  189. 

*  Ckitia^  etc.^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  vol  xi«,p.  144. 


324         THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

At  the  Shanghai  Protestant  Missionary  Conference 
of  1890,  in  a  paper  on  the  "Historical  Review  of 
Missionary  Methods,"  by  Rev,  Dr  Nevius,  we  find  that 
"  the  policy  of  stimulatingr  the  growth  of  missions  by  the 
free  use  of  money  is  carried  out  in  Shantung  to  its  fullest 
development  by  the  Romish  Church.  Material  advan- 
tages are  offered  of  many  kinds;  tracts  of  land  are 
purchased  and  let  to  Christians  or  inquirers,  to  work  on 
shares ;  money  is  invested  in  erecting  buildings,  afford- 
ing employment  to  artisans  of  every  kind ;  schools  are 
established,  giving  work  to  teachers ;  men  are  engaged 
as  paid  preachers,  as  remarkable  for  the  greatness  of 
their  numbers  as  the  meagreness  of  their  qualifications. 
I  am  credibly  informed  that  these  temporal  inducements 
are  offered  openly  and  frankly,  whether  with  the  sanction 
and  approval  of  the  missionaries  in  charge,  or  not,  I 
cannot  say.  It  is  certain  that  the  general  impression 
has  gone  abroad  through  the  province  that  a  person 
entering  the  Romish  Church  is  sure  of  having  his 
temporal  wants  provided  for  and  his  lawsuits  attended 
to.  A  few  persons  have  left  our  communion  avowedly 
to  improve  their  worldly  condition."^ 

Rev.  Alexander  Armstrong  remarks  concerning  the 
Catholic  missionary  in  Shantung,  the  year  following : — 
"The  history  would,  I  am  sure,  be  one  of  intense 
interest:  for  whatever  may  be  said  against  the 
practices  of  those  who  profess  this  faith,  it  has  never 
lacked  men  of  unswerving  fidelity  to  the  commands  of 
the  Pope — men,  who,  however  often  they  may  have 
used  questionable  means  in  order  to  accomplish  so- 
called  good,  have  stuck  nobly  to  their  posts — aye,  and 
died  as  if  happy  in  the  arms  of  *  Mother  Church.' "  * 

In  1892,  a  gentleman  who  describes  himself  as 
"  Mr  Chi,  a  humble  member  of  the  tribe  of  peripatetic 
sellers  of  good  books,"  tells  us,   "the  fathers  do  not 

'  Records  of  Shanghai  Cotrfertnce^  1890,  pp.  288-95. 
>  ShasUungy    1891,   Alexander   Annstrong,    F.E.I.S.    (Am.    Presb. 
Miss.),  pp.  143-4. 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW       825 

personally  preach  to  the  heathen,  nor  circulate  books, 
nor  carry  on  medical  work  among  them  .  .  .  being 
mainly  occupied  in  discharginsr  the  offices  of  their 
religion  on  behalf  of  their  Christians.  .  .  .  But  the 
most  important  reason  in  favour  of  the  foreign  dress 
for  Protestant  missionaries,  and  the  one  which  is  alone 
sufficient  to  decide  the  question  in  its  favour  against 
all  that  can  be  said  on  the  other  side,  is  the  marked 
distinction  which  it  places  between  us  and  the  Roman 
Catholics  .  .  .  and  go  where  one  may  in  China,  whether 
justly  or  unjustly,  these  are  regarded  by  the  heathen 
with  intense  dislike.  It  is  thus  of  the  utmost  import- 
ance that  they  should  understand  that  we  are  not 
Romanists,  and  very  often  when  they  do  so,  from 
being  bitterly  hostile,  they  become  very  friendly.  It  is 
thus  often  necessary  to  say  that  we  differ  from  them  in 
nationality,  in  doctrines,  in  practices,  and  in  dress.  .  .  . 
I  am  afraid  that  in  writing  in  this  way  I  shall  be 
regarded  by  some  as  exceedingly  uncharitable,  but  I 
must  confess  to  a  measure  of  sympathy  with  the 
heathen  in  this  matter."^ 

Although  "the  fathers  do  not  carry  on  medical 
work"  among  the  heathen,  Rev.  Alexander  Williamson 
wrote,  some  twenty  years  previously: — "Hospitals, 
indeed,  existed  in  the  Sung  Dynasty,  A.D.  960-1278, 
and  perhaps  earlier,  but  there  can  be  no  question  that 
such  institutions  received  an  immense  impulse  from  the 
Roman  Catholic  missions.  After  their  advent  in  China, 
under  the  pressure  of  their  example,  and  from  the  Ming 
Dynasty  onward,  foundling  hospitals,  and  hospitals  for 
the  sick  and  poor  have  been  established  in  a  large  pro- 
portion of  the  great  cities."  * 

Concerning  "personal  preaching,"  Rev.  Dr  Nevius 
warned  his  readers,  in  1898 : — "  We  should  remember 

1  TAe  Anti-Foreign  Riots  in  China  in  1891,  1892  {North  China 
Herald  Office),  pp.  294-5. 

*  Jourmys  in  North  China^  1870^  Rev.  Alexander  Williamson,  B.A., 
voL  i.,  pp.  36-7. 


326  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

that  continuous  discourse  is  something  which  is  almost 
unknown  in  China.  Even  educated  Chinamen  follow 
it  with  difficulty.  .  .  .  An  attempt  at  formal  preaching 
by  those  who  have  neither  the  Scriptural  knowledge, 
nor  the  intellectual  and  practical  training  to  fit  them  for 
it,  is  still  more  to  be  deprecated.^  .  .  .  Some  mission- 
aries adopt  indirect  and  unobtrusive  methods,  avoiding 
crowds,  and  making  comparatively  little  use  of  public 
preaching,  planning  to  have  the  people  seek  them, 
rather  than  going  after  the  people.  The  Romanists,  so 
far  as  my  observation  goes,  generally  adopt  this  method. 
Their  long  experience  and  success  render  their  example 
worthy  of  serious  consideration."  *  "  Colloquial  preach- 
ing in  churches  they  have  always  had."' 

In  1897,  Mr  Arnot  Reid informs  us  that,  "the  feeling 
between  the  different  Protestant  missionaries,  I  am 
glad  to  say,  was  entirely  friendly  and  helpful.  To  the 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries,  the  attitude  was  different. 
The  Roman  Catholics  do  not,  as  it  happens,  work  much 
in  Kalgan,  but  they  work  on  a  considerable  scale  in  the 
neighbouring  town  of  Hsuan-hua-fu,  containing  100,000 
inhabitants.  I  judge  that  they  work  there  with  more 
success,  not  because  of  any  statement  made  to  that 
effect,  but  because  of  the  bitterness  of  feeling  that 
seemed  to  me  to  characterise  the  tone  of  reference  to 
them.  This  was  so  notable,  that,  somewhat  in  defiance, 
I  fear,  of  good  manners,  I  was  hastily  impelled  to  ask, 
although  as  delicately  as  possible,  whether  Roman 
Catholics  were  not  to  be  considered  as  fellow-Christians, 
engaged  in  preaching  the  same  Gospel.  I  did  not  put  it 
quite  so  plainly  as  that,  and  I  did  not  obtain  any  very  plain 
answer ;  but  I  fear  that  the  average  Protestant  mission- 
ary in  China  does  not  recognise  a  Roman  Catholic 
priest  as  a  fellow- worker  in  the  cause  of  Christianity."* 

1  Methods  of  Mission  Work  (Reprint),  1898,  Rev.  John  L.  Nevius, 
D.D.,  p.  36.  *  Ibid.,  p.  86. 

'  Rev.  J.  Edkins,  D.D.,  Shanghai  Conference  Records,  1890,  p.  568. 
^  Peking  to  Petersburg,  1897,  Arnot  Reid,  pp.  ^^'^, 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW       327 

This  last  proposition  had  been  already  stated  in  the 
same  terms  by  Archdeacon  Moule: — "The  ability, 
energy,  self-denial,  and  devotion  of  many  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  demand  our  hearty  admiration  and 
attract  our  sympathy.  But  when  we  find  the  doctrines 
and  ritual  reproduced  full-blown  before  the  heathen, 
such  as  the  cultus  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  image  worship, 
the  sacrifice  of  the  Mass  ...  we  dare  not  recognise 
them  heartily  as  fellow-Christians  and  fellow-workers, 
however  earnestly  we  may  desire  to  do  so."  ^ 

In  1 90 1,  speaking  of  the  protection  and  rights 
claimed  for  missionaries  by  European  Powers,  Rev.  J. 
Campbell  Gibson  observes : — "  In  the  missions  of  the 
Church  of  Rome  they  are  systematically,  and  I  am 
afraid  I  must  say  unscrupulously,  used  for  the  gathering 
in  of  large  numbers  of  nominal  converts,  whose  only 
claim  to  the  Christian  name  is  the  registration  in  lists 
kept  by  native  catechists,  in  which  they  are  entered  on 
payment  of  a  small  fee,  without  regard  to  their  posses- 
sion of  any  degree  of  Christian  knowledge  or  character. 
In  the  event  of  their  being  involved  in  any  dispute  or 
law-suit,  the  native  catechists  or  priests,  and  even  the 
foreign  missionaries  take  up  the  cause.  .  .  .  The 
consequence  is  that  the  Catholic  Missions  in  South 
China,  and,  I  believe,  in  the  North  also,  are  bitterly 
hated  by  the  Chinese  people,  and  by  the  magistrates. 
By  terrorising  both  magistrates  and  people  they  have 
secured  in  many  places  a  large  amount  of  apparent 
popularity,  but  are  sowing  the  seeds  of  a  harvest  of 
hatred  and  bitterness  which  may  be  reaped  in  deplorable 
forms  in  years  to  come.  On  the  other  hand,  some 
Protestant  missionaries  have  laid  down  the  rule  that 
we  should  teach  our  converts  to  rely  simply  on  the 
protection  of  God,  refusing  them  any  assistance  when 
they  are  wronged  or  persecuted."* 

1  China  as  a  Mission  Field,  1891,  Yen.  Arthur  £.  Moule,  B.D.,  p.  44. 
^  Mission  Problems  and  Mission  Methods  in  South  China,  1901,  J. 
Campbell  Gibson,  M.A.,  D.D.,  pp.  309-10. 


328  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

There  seem  to  be  exceptions  to  this  rule,  however, 
as  we  had  previously  learned  from  the  same  reverend 
gentleman,  in  reference  to  a  case  of  persecution,  that 
"it  was  only  after  long  efforts  on  our  part,  that  the 
leading  murderer,  who  was  a  nephew  of  his  victim,  was, 
after  some  time,  imprisoned  for  the  crime.  "^  And  an 
examination  of  the  official  papers  for  1901  shows  us 
a  "Memorandum  by  Rev.  Dr  Gibson  respecting 
missionary  losses,"  addressed  to  Mr  Consul  Scott,  of 
Swatow,  19th  December  1900: — "Jao  Ping  and  other 
district  losses ;  for  actual  goods  and  property  lost ;  extra 
expenses  of  missionaries  and  families  consequent  on 
abandoning  stations  during  the  riots ;  compensation  for 
three  lives  lost  (native) ;  allowances  to  converts  for  food 
on  expulsion  from  home,  etc. ;  say,  in  all,  40,000  dollars. 

"In  settlement  of  this  and  other  outstanding  claims, 
I  would  ask  that,  at  the  very  least,  the  magistrate  of 
Pu  Ning  be  removed  for  the  gross  partiality  he  has 
shown  in  dealing  with  the  Tsai  Kou  case,  and 
especially  for  the  neglect  of  the  authorities  to  hold  an 
impartial  investigation,  as  repeatedly  urged  by  H.M. 
Minister,  that  the  accused  in  the  case  be  at  once  released, 
and  reinstated  in  the  family  home  and  property.  .  .  . 

"  As  regards  the  heavy  losses  at  Jao  Ping,  etc.,  we  beg 
your  best  assistance  in  recovering  the  full  amount ;  but 
in  order  to  expedite  matters  and  obtain  an  immediate 
settlement,  we  would  leave  the  question  of  the  amount 
practically  in  your  hands."  * 

In  consideration  of  the  distressed  state  of  the 
country,  in  deference  to  the  request  of  the  Chinese 
authorities,  the  claim  was,  on  the  application  of  H.M. 
Consul,  reduced  to  30,000  dollars.' 

However,  a  more  kindly  feeling  seems  to  prevail 
now,  as  we  learn  from  the  same  reverend  gentleman 
that   "Protestant  missionaries  will  always  look  with 

^  Mission  Problems^  etc,^  p.  266. 

>  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (6),  1901,  p.  82. 

»  md^  p.  83. 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW       829 

esteem  upon  any  one — even  if  we  think  him  in  many 
things  mistaken — who  goes  among  the  Chinese  in 
sincerity  with  the  Holy  Bible  in  one  hand  and  the  cross 
of  Christ  in  the  other."  ^ 

From  Rev.  J.  Miller  Graham,  in  1902,  we  learn  that 
"the  missionary  body  in  China  is  a  very  complex 
organisation.  It  is  composed  of  diverse  elements.  It 
includes  various  nationalities.  .  .  .  That  individual 
missionaries  are  all  actuated  by  high  and  sincere  motives, 
we  must  in  justice  believe,  but  that  their  methods  for 
the  carrying  on  of  their  work  are  all  prudent  or  wise,  it 
would  be  impossible  perhaps  to  expect.  It  would  not 
be  difficult,  for  example,  to  show  that  the  methods  of 
the  Roman  Catholic  Church — methods  which  differ 
widely  from  those  of  the  Protestant  Church — ^are  to  a 
large  extent  responsible  for  a  great  deal  of  ill-feeling. 
I  have  already  shown  their  connection  with  the  occupa- 
tion of  Kiaochow — the  root  of  all  the  trouble  that 
followed.  The  priests  are  constantly  coming  into 
conflict  with  the  native  officials  over  the  law  pleas  of 
their  converts.  They  have  demanded  and  have  received, 
the  better  to  facilitate  their  ends,  a  civil  status  which 
places  them  on  the  same  level  as  mandarins.  They 
have  employed  as  Church  agents  men  of  notoriously  bad 
character,  who  have  used  their  position  to  levy  black- 
mail on  innocent  and  helpless  people  in  the  name  of 
Mother  Church.  All  this  has  caused  much  friction 
between  priests  and  magistrates,  and  it  has  made  the 
name  of  the  Roman  Church  in  many  parts  of  China 
a  by-word  among  the  people  for  all  that  is  unscrupulous 
and  high-handed."* 

The  Catholic  missionaries,  nevertheless,  seem  to 
have  had  their  good  points.  From  the  same  authority 
we  learn  what  took  place  at  Moukden  at  the  outbreak 
of  the  Boxer  Rising,  in  1900: — "Hurriedly  we  packed 
a  few  things  together,  and  at  dawn  on  the  23rd  June, 

*  The  North  China  Daily  News^  10th  June  1907. 

*  East  of  the  Barrier^  1902,  Rev.  J.  Miller  Graham,  p.  208. 


330  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

all  the  remaining  ladies  and  children,  with  Mr and 

myself  made  our  way  quietly  out  of  the  city,  and  reached 
the  Russian  railway,  ten  miles  distant.  After  three 
days  we  reached  Newchwang  in  safety.  It  was  my 
purpose  to  have  returned  to  Moukden,  but  when  we 
reached  Newchwang,  we  had  advice  sayings  that,  as 

the  situation  had  rapidly  grown  worse, , y  and 

were  compelled  to  leave.  .  .  .  On  30th  June  came 

the  sad  tidings  of  the  destruction  of  all  our  property  in 
Moukden,  and  the  massacre  of  many  of  our  Christians. 
One  week  later  came  the  still  sadder  intelligence  of  the 
massacre  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Bishop,  two  priests, 
and  two  'Sisters.*  They  had  armed  their  converts, 
fortified  the  compound,  and  attempted  to  resist  the 
Boxer  onset — but  in  vain.  Had  we  remained  in 
Moukden  a  week  longer,  we  should  doubtless  have 
shared  a  like  fate.  Every  day  thereafter  brought 
tidings  of  the  most  wanton  destruction  of  churches  and 
chapels,  houses  and  hospitals,  all  over  Manchuria. 
Nearly  every  Christian  merchant  had  his  shop  looted. 
A  blinding  sense  of  horror  comes  over  us,  as  we  think 
of  the  sufferings  and  peril  through  which  our  native 
brethren  passed."^ 

In  1903,  the  author  of  A  Flight  for  Life,  in  writing 
of  the  occupation  of  Kiaochow  and  the  cause  thereof, 
informs  us  that: — "Two  Jesuit  missionaries  who  had 
been  expelled  from  Germany  for  some  misdeeds,  went, 
perhaps  with  sincere  intentions,  to  the  district  of  Ts  ao 
Chou  Fu  in  the  south-west  corner  of  the  Province  of 
Shantung  .  •  .  and  these  missionaries  lost  their  lives."  * 
[They  were  not  Jesuits,  and  had  not  been  expelled  from 
Germany  for  some  misdeeds ;  but  in  the  unavoidable 
haste  of  a  flight  for  life  it  is  not  always  possible  to  be 
accurate.] 

Writing  in  1904,  Rev.  A.  E.  Glover,  of  the  China 
Inland  Mission,  informs  us  that  ''it  is  impossible  to 

^  East  of  the  Barrier^  pp.  167-8. 

>  A  Flight  far  Ldfe^  1905,  James  Hudson  Roberts,  p.  8. 


CATHOLIC  MISSIONS— ANOTHER  VIEW       331 

exaggerate  the  bitterness  of  the  hatred  which  the 
Roman  Catholics  have  brought  upon  themselves. 
Their  aspirations  to  temporal  power  and  spirit  of 
political  intrigue ;  their  secret,  and  withal  unscrupulous 
methods  of  work;  their  arrogant  pretensions,  their 
interference  in  the  law  courts,  backed  by  threats  of 
appeal  to  the  Government  of  their  country ;  their  rule 
of  celibate  living,  their  despotic  use  of  priestly  power — 
all  this  and  more  had  provoked  the  natives  to  the  point 
of  exasperation.  A  brother  missionary  working  in 
An-huei  once  told  me  that,  when  itinerating  in  the 
north  of  that  province,  where  the  Romanists  had  been 
labouring,  he  found  that  to  mention  the  name  of  Jesus 
was  to  open  the  flood-gates  of  blasphemy.  To  use  his 
own  words,  '  The  Roman  Catholics  had  made  the  name 
of  Jesus  literally  to  stink  before  the  people,  and  the 
mere  fact  that  the  two  religions  owned  the  same  Jesus 
for  their  God  was  in  itself  to  defeat  every  effort  to 
obtain  a  hearing  for  the  Gospel.' "  ^ 

The  reviewer  of  the  work  from  which  the  above 
extract  is  taken  remarks: — "There  is  surely  ample 
testimony  from  impartial  witnesses  that  the  Roman 
Catholic  missionaries  in  China  have  been  as  heroic  as 
in  other  countries  where  they  have  carried  the  Cross 
to  savage  and  barbarous  peoples;  and  to  read  such  a 
statement  as  that  given  above  will  tempt  some  people 
to  say  with  bitterness,  'How  these  Christians  love 
one  another ! ' "  ^ 

And  finally,  we  find  that  the  "hindrances"  to  the 
work  of  the  American  Baptist  Mission  of  Central 
China,  in  Hupeh,  in  1907,  were  "Roman  Catholics 
and  scalawags,  who  falsely  borrow  our  name  to  shield 
themselves  from  the  law."' 

*  A  Thousand  Miles  of  Miracle  in  China^  1904,  Rev.  A.  E.  Glover,  p.  9. 
>  The  Tribune^  13th  August  1906. 

'  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China^  1907,  edited  by  D. 
MacGillivray,  p.  340. 


CHAPTER  IV 

ORPHANAGES 

On  9th  February  1871,  the  Chinese  Government  issued 
a  circular  to  the  Treaty  Powers,  concerningr  missions 
in  general  and  Catholic  missions  in  particular.  As  the 
Governments  principally  concerned  declined  to  adopt 
its  various  proposals,  the  incident  was  considered  at  an 
end  in  November  of  the  same  year. 

"The  gravamen  of  the  offences  cited  in  the 
circular,"  says  Captain  Brinldey,  "was  that  neither 
Chinese  administrative  authority,  nor  Chinese  customs 
were  respected  by  the  Roman  Catholic  missionaries. 
Being  removed  by  the  Treaties  beyond  the  reach  of 
Chinese  jurisdiction,  they  availed  themselves  of  this 
exception  in  a  manner  calculated  to  excite  popular 
prejudice.  In  the  matter  of  orphanages,  for  example, 
which  had  proved  the  source  of  so  many  evil  rumours, 
the  missionaries  insisted  on  complete  independence  oif 
local  ofjficial  supervision.  Seeing  that  by  carrying  on 
their  work — work  which  the  Prince  [of  Kung]  and  his 
fellow  authors  frankly  admitted  to  be  benevolent — 
behind  doors  closed  to  all  Chinese  observation,  they 
created  an  opportunity  for  injurious  suspicions,  the 
obvious  remedy  lay  either  in  frank  co-operation  with 
Chinese  officialdom,  or  in  transferring  the  scene  of 
their  charitable  labours  to  their  own  countries."* 

The    first   article    of    the    circular    says: — "The 
Christians,  when  they  found  an  orphanage,  give  no 
^  Ckina^  eic^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  voL  xiL,  pp.  135-6. 


ORPHANAGES  333 

notice  to  the  authorities,  and  appear  to  act  with 
mystery ;  hence  the  suspicions  and  hatred  of  the  people. 
In  ceasing  to  receive  children,  the  evil  rumours  which 
are  now  in  circulation  would,  at  the  same  time, 
disappear.  If,  however,  they  wish  to  continue  this 
work,  only  the  children  of  necessitous  Christians  must 
be  received.  ...  It  would  be  a  good  things  to  abolish 
the  foreigm  orphanasres,  and  to  transport  them  to 
Europe,  where  they  could  practise  their  charity  at 
their  ease:  it  would  then  belongr  to  the  Chinese  to 
come  to  the  aid  of  these  children."  ^ 

Orphanage  work  in  China — so  far  as  Europeans  are 
concerned — was  formerly  quite  peculiar  to  the  Catholic 
missions.  "  Protestant  missionaries,"  wrote  Mr  Wade, 
H.M.  Minister  in  Peking,  to  W^n  Siang,  in  June  1871, 
"have  not  to  my  knowledge  established  any  such 
asylums,  but  I  am  assured  that  in  those  of  the  Roman 
Catholics,  no  objection  is  ever  made  to  the  visits  of  the 
parents  or  friends  of  an  infant.  Many  of  these,  at  the 
same  time,  have  neither  parent  nor  friend.  They  are 
children  who  have  been  abandoned  by  all.  It  would  be 
difHcult  to  find  anyone  who  would  become  security  for 
unfortunate  outcasts  who  have  been  left  by  the  wayside 
to  die."* 

"  The  Romanists,  too,"  remarks  Dr  Coltman,  "have 
orphan  asylums,  and,  so  far  as  I  know,  are  the  only 
denomination  who  have,  thus  far  [1891],  taken  up  that 
branch  of  the  work."  * 

We  may  here  notice  the  form  which  "suspicions" 
take  in  China  in  this  matter.  Among  the  collected 
correspondence  relative  to  the  Tientsin  massacre  of 
1870,  we  find  a  letter  from  a  Cantonese  at  Tientsin  to 
a  friend  at  Chefoo,  in  which  the  latter  was  told  the 
French  sent  converts  to  remote  places  to  kidnap  boys, 
providing  them  with  stupefying  drugs  for  the  purpose. 

1  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (3),  1871,  p.  11. 

*  Ibid,  (i),  1872,  p.  14. 

'  The  Chinese^  1891,  Robert  Coltman,  Junior,  M.D.,  p.  176. 


334  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

The  captives  had  their  eyes  and  hearts  taken  out,  and 
their  bodies  were  secretly  made  away  with.^ 

The  accusations  against  the  Sisters  at  Wuhu  in 
1 89 1,  previously  quoted,  may  be  recalled,  viz.,  of  having 
drugged  children,  in  order  to  take  away  speech  and 
hearing,  that  the  Sisters  might  steal  and  send  them  to 
Shanghai. 

A  day  or  two  before  the  Sze-Chuen  riots  of  1895, 
the  Province  was  placarded  to  this  effect : — "  Notice  is 
hereby  given  that,  at  the  present  time,  '  foreign  barbar* 
ians '  are  hiring  evil  characters  to  kidnap  small  children 
that  they  may  extract  oil  from  them  for  their  use.  I 
have  a  female  servant  named  Li  who  has  personally 
seen  this  done.  I  exhort  you,  good  people,  not  to  allow 
your  children  to  go  out.  I  hope  you  will  act  in  accord- 
ance with  this."  ^ 

In  the  Hunan  publications  we  find: — "They  [the 
Christians]  also  [here  follow  details  of  alleged  mutila* 
tion  of  women  and  boys],  and  sell  them  to  foreign 
merchants  to  make  photographic  chemicals."  ^ 

Nor  were  these  suspicions  confined  to  the  lower 
orders.  Mr  Freeman  Mitford  tells  us  that  "  the  famous 
General  Tseng  Kwo-fan  (father  of  the  Marquis  Ts6ng, 
who  was  afterwards  Minister  in  London)  was  talking 
one  day  with  an  English  doctor  on  the  subject  of  this 
babies'  eyes  fraud,  when  suddenly  he  said,  '  It  is  no  use 
attempting  to  deny  it,  for  I  have  here  some  of  the  dried 
specimens,'  and  he  pulled  out  a  packet  of  those  gelatine 
capsules  which  are  used  for  covering  castor-oil  and  other 
nauseous  drugs ! "  * 

At  first  sight,  it  might  seem  that  the  above  was  too 
ridiculous  to  merit  serious  consideration.     But  it  must 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  187 1,  p.  72. 

3  History  of  the  Sze-Chuen  Riots  (May,  June),  1895,  Alfred 
Cunningham,  p.  xxx. 

'  The  Hunan  Tracts  cf  Chinoy  1892,  translated  by  <' Shocked 
Friend  of  China,"  p.  4. 

*  The  Attach^ at  Peking^  1900,  A.  B.  Freeman  Mitford,  C.B.,  p.  vii. 


ORPHANAGES  335 

SOi-f 

be  explained  that  Chinese  pharmacy  appears  to  be 
committed  to  the  principle  that  no  remedy  is  efficacious 
unless  it  is  nasty.  Wherefore  every  sort  of  abomination 
is  called  into  requisition,  parts  of  the  human  body, 
especially  the  viscera,  and  even  human  and  animal 
excrement. 

Rev.  Dr  Glover  further  remarks  that  "  it  is  deeply  to 
be  regretted  that  the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation 
should  have  been  carried  to  China.  To  the  people  there, 
it  sugfgfests  that  Christians  are  cannibals ;  and  they  see 
in  the  numerous  orphanages,  which  Roman  Catholic 
piety  has  established  throughout  the  land,  only  the 
means  of  supplying  the  Lord's  Table  with  the  revolting 
meal."^ 

This  last  idea — cannibalism-— came  near  involving 
in  unpleasant  consequences  no  less  a  person  than 
H.M.  Consul  at  Hankow,  as  we  learn  from  Mr  Wade : 
"  There  was  last  year  a  demonstration  against  a  picnic 
party  (of  whom  the  Consul  was  one),  occasioned  by  the 
belief  that  the  foreigners  were  about  to  eat  their  own 
little-children."* 

All  of  which — in  the  circular  and  outside  it — is  very 
edifying,  evincing,  as  it  does,  such  a  tender  regard  for 
the  well-being  of  Chinese  children.  The  question 
naturally  suggests  itself: — What  made  the  orphanages 
necessary?  And  this  question  is  now  going  to  be 
answered  for  us. 

"A  law  exists  in  the  statute-book,"  says  Professor 
(now  Sir  Robert)  Douglas,  "making  infanticide  a 
crime,  but,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  never  acted  upon ; 
and  in  some  parts  of  the  country,  more  especially  in  the 
provinces  of  Keang-se  and  Fuh-kien,  this  most  unnatural 
offence  prevails  among  the  poorer  classes  to  an  alarm- 
ing extent.  Not  only  do  the  people  acknowledge  the 
existence  of  the  practice,  but  they  even  go  the  length  of 

>  A   Winter  in  North  China^  1892  (Introduction),  Rev.  R.  Glover, 
D.D.,  p.  8. 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (4),  1871,  p.  i. 


336  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

defending  it.  What,  they  say,  is  the  good  of  rearing 
daughters;  when  they  are  young  they  are  only  an 
expense,  and  when  they  reach  an  age  when  they  might 
be  able  to  earn  a  living,  they  marry  and  leave  us? 
Periodically  the  mandarins  inveigh  against  the  in- 
humanity of  the  offence,  and  appeal  to  the  better 
instincts  of  the  people  to  put  a  stop  to  it ;  but  a  stone 
which  stands  near  a  pool  outside  the  city  of  Foochow, 
bearing  the  inscription,  *  Girls  may  not  be  drowned 
here,*  testifies  with  terrible  emphasis  to  the  futility  of 
their  praiseworthy  endeavours.  It  is  only,  however, 
abject  poverty  which  drives  parents  to  this  dreadful 
expedient,  and  in  the  more  prosperous  and  wealthy 
districts  the  crime  is  almost  unknown."  ^ 

So  much  for  the  law,  now  for  its  observance. 
"One  Sunday  [in  1866],"  we  are  told,  "while  service 
was  going  on,"  at  Fung-Hwa  in  Che-kiang,  "those 
present  were  greatly  distressed  by  the  piteous  cries  of 
an  infant,  whose  brains  were  being  literally  beaten  out 
by  its  own  parents  in  an  adjoining  yard.  It  was  a  little 
girl  and  would  not  pay  for  keeping."  * 

In  the  Report  of  the  Delegates  of  the  Shanghai 
Chamber  of  Commerce  on  the  Trade  and  Commerce 
of  the  Upper  Yangtze  River,  the  writers — Messrs 
Michie  and  Francis — mention  that,  in  the  Province  of 
Kweichow,  infanticide  of  female  children  "is  very 
prevalent,  not  only  amongst  the  very  poor,  but 
perhaps  to  a  still  greater  proportionate  extent  amongst 
the  wealthier  inhabitants.  This  remark  applies  also 
to  the  inhabitants  of  Szechuan,  where  it  is  said  to  be 
extremely  rare  to  find  a  family  with  more  than  two 
daughters."* 

In  1870,  Rev.  William  Muirhead,  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society,  mentions  that  "a  woman   once 

^  China^  Manners  and  CustomSy  1882,  Robert  K.  Douglas,  pp.  91-2. 
^  Story  of  the  China  Inland  Mission^  1900,  M.  Geraldine  Guinness, 
vol.  ii.,  p.  62. 

>  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (8),  1870,  p.  37. 


ORPHANAGES  33V 

confessed  to  me  that  she  had  destroyed  three  or  four 
of  her  own  girls,  but  she  did  not  like  it  to  be  referred 
to,  as  there  was  evidently  a  sense  of  shame  and  infamy 
connected  with  it"^ 

On  the  authority  of  Mr  Hughes,  and  referring,  as 
we  gather,  to  the  year  1871  or  thereabouts,  Mr 
Thomson  informs  us : — "  Female  infanticide  is  perhaps 
worse  in  this  part  of  the  Fuh-kien  Province  than  in 
any  other  quarter  of  the  Empire  [he  writes  concern- 
ing Amoy],  and  this  corroborates  the  conclusion  I  had 
myself  come  to  from  inquiries  I  made  on  the  spot. 
Mr  Hughes,  one  day,  met  a  stout,  well-to-do  looking 
man  of  the  coolie  class,  carrjdng  two  neat  and  clean 
round  baskets,  slung  on  a  pole,  which  he  bore  across 
his  shoulder.  '  Hearing  the  cry  of  a  child,  I  stopped 
him,  when  I  found  he  had  two  infants  in  each  basket ; ' 
and  it  is  recorded  that  this  crafty  old  speculator  in 
innocents  was  on  his  way  to  sell  his  living  burden  at 
the  Foundling  Hospital,  where  he  would  receive  one 
hundred  cash,  or  about  fivepence,  for  a  female  child, 
and  as  much  as  three  pounds  for  a  boy.  The  Found- 
ling Hospital  was  organised  by  a  native  merchant 
whom  I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting;  and  it  is  a 
lamentable  fact  that  the  prospect  of  receiving  fivepence 
will  tempt  a  mother  to  iiart  with  her  babe."* 

"  Fu-kien,"  the  late  Mr  Archibald  Little  explained, 
more  than  twenty  years  later,  "seems  always  to  have 
had  a  larger  population  than  it  could  provide  food  for, 
and  hence  is  the  province  in  which  infanticide  chiefly 
prevails."* 

Ven.  Archdeacon  Gray  notes  that,  in  1873,  "the 
Provincial  Treasurer  of  Hupeh  has  issued  a  proclama- 
tion, prohibiting  in  the  strongest  terms  the  drowning  of 
female  children."* 

1  China  and  the  Gospel^  1870,  Rev.  William  Muirhead,  p.  65. 
»  Through  China  with  a  Camera,  1898,  John  Thomson,  F.R.G.S.,  pp. 
99.100.  *  The  Far  East,  1905,  Archibald  Little,  p.  119. 

♦  Walks  in  the  City  of  Canton,  1875,  Ven.  John  Henry  Gray,  M.A.,  p.  575, 

Y 


338  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

The  taotai  of  the  district  of  Se-Non,  says  Baron  de 
Hubner,  in  1874,  "resides  at  Nam-tao.  Without 
favouring  the  missionaries,  he  condescends  to  ignore 
their  presence.  On  a  recent  occasion  he  has  even 
indirectly  acknowledged  their  merit,  by  exhorting  his 
subjects  in  a  proclamation  to  give  their  children  to  the 
Fathers,  rather  than  to  kill  or  expose  them."^ 

In  his  work  on  The  Religions  of  China,  Professor 
James  Legge  tells  us  that: — "Infanticide  has  been 
charged  against  the  Chinese,  as  showing  their  want  of 
natural  affection ;  and  though  it  does  not  exist  to  the 
extent  that  has  sometimes  been  represented,  it  meets 
you  in  most  parts  of  the  Empire,  and  is  owing  mainly 
to  the  poverty  of  the  people.  The  reason  why  I  refer 
to  it  is  because  the  victims  of  the  unnatural  practice  are 
almost  invariably  girls."* 

Concerning  her  visit  to  Formosa,  Mrs  Hughes 
remarks,  in  1881,  that  "the  Padre  told  us  that  the 
care  of  infant  children  is  sometimes  thrust  upon  him 
by  the  Chinese,  and  that  a  number  of  little  innocents 
who  would  otherwise  have  perished  were  then  being 
brought  up  at  the  expense  of  the  mission  by  nurses  in 
various  parts  of  the  country.  Many  natives  who,  from 
poverty  or  other  causes,  are  desirous  to  get  rid  of 
their  children,  knowing  the  benevolent  nature  of  the 
foreign  missionaries,  expose  their  newly-born  infants  in 
places  where  the  Padre  or  some  member  of  his  house- 
hold are  sure  to  find  them,  feeling  assured  that  in  his 
hands  they  will  meet  with  tender  care.  When  the 
infants  have  been  for  some  time  in  the  hands  of  kind 
nurses,  they  are  transferred  to  an  orphanage  which  has 
been  established  in  the  principal  city  of  the  island — 
Tai-wan-foo."' 

"  A  Roman  Catholic  priest,  who  had  lived  twenty- 

^  A  RimbU  round  the  World,  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hubner,  vol.  ii., 
p.  377. 

*  The  Religions  of  China,  1880^  Professor  James  Legge,  p.  iii. 

»  Among  Sons  of  Han,  1881,  Mrs  Thomas  Francis  Hughes,  pp.  183-4. 


ORPHANAGES  339 

one  years  in  Peking,  told  me  [Miss  Fielde]  that  during 
the  year  1882,  seven  hundred  little  castaway  girls  had 
been  gathered  up  alive  from  the  ruts  and  pits  of  the 
street,  and  brought  in  by  the  messengers  sent  out  on 
such  service  from  the  Roman  Catholic  Foundling  Asylum 
of  that  city ;  and  that  during  the  previous  ten  years, 
over  eight  thousand  infants  had  been  thus  found  and 
sheltered  by  the  same  institution."  ^ 

"  Close  inquiry  into  the  practice  of  infanticide  reveals 
a  state  of  things  truly  heartrending,"  wrote  Rev.  B.  C. 
Henry,  in  1884.  He  had  good  reason  to  say  so,  for  he 
goes  on  to  record  that  in  some  places,  one-fifth  of  all 
the  female  children  born  were  put  to  death  by  their 
parents.  In  some  districts  of  a  limited  area  the  per- 
centage was  greater  still,  while  in  the  wealthier  centres 
it  was  usually  less.  Of  ten  women,  selected  at  random, 
all  but  two  were  found  to  have  destroyed  at  least  one 
child,  some  acknowledging  the  guilt  of  several.* 

In  view  of  the  virtuous  concern  for  the  welfare  of 
children  manifested  in  official  quarters  in  China,  it  is 
perhaps  a  little  startling  to  learn  that  "only  last  year 
[1886],  the  Peking  Gazette  recorded  the  horrible  fact  of 
a  mother  burying  her  own  child  alive,  and  the  Emperor 
condoning,  even  if  not  actually  approving,  the  loathsome 
crime.  ' 

The  year  1887  affords  an  instance  of  lack  of  con- 
cern for  children.  Thus,  Rev.  Virgil  Hart  about  a 
Sz'Ch  wanese  woman  attached  to  his  party : — "  Between 
Hankow  and  Ichang  she  gave  birth  to  a  son ;  and  a 
foreign  lady  who  was  on  board  and  took  some  interest 
in  the  woman,  told  us  that  she  found  her  in  bed,  while 
the  infant  was  lying  on  the  iron  deck  nearly  dead. 
When  she  remonstrated  with  the  mother,  she  replied  that 
it  was  of  no  account  as  she  had  three  sons  at  home."  * 

^  Pagoda  Shadows  (Sixth  Edition),  1890^  Adele  M.  Fielde,  pp.  33-4. 
«  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  p.  308. 
'  Leaves  from  my  Chinese  Scrap-Book^  1887,  Frederic  Henry  Balfour, 
p.  61.  *  Western  China^  1888,  Rev.  Virgil  C.  Hart,  B.D.,  p.  26. 


340  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Rev.  F.  Hartmann  told  the  Missionary  Conference 
of  1890  that  "the  Chinese  themselves  have  very  long- 
been  aware  of  the  fact  that  infanticide  is  a  crying  evil  in 
China,  so  much  so  that  Imperial  mandates  have  again 
and  asrain  condemned  it,  and  that  foundlinsf  asylums 
have  been  erected  by  heathen  charity.  •  .  .  Now  to 
rescue  from  death,  or  from  the  worse  fate  of  slavery  to 
sin  and  shame,  and  to  bring  up  such  foundlings,  opens 
up  a  very  wide  field  for  orphanages  in  China.  Roman 
Catholic  missions  have  availed  themselves  of  this 
opportunity  to  a  far  larger  extent  than  Protestants.  I 
do  not  think  that  it  is  the  wish  of  the  Conference  that  I 
should  enlarge  upon  their  work;  but  I  may  say  this 
much,  that  in  some  of  their  institutions  there  is  much 
well  worth  seeing,  and  something  well  worth  imitating."^ 

Sir  Robert  Douglas,  while  admitting  that  "it  is 
difficult  to  pronounce  accurately  on  the  prevalence  of 
the  practice,"  notes  the  fact  of  the  discovery  by  an 
officer  of  the  Engineers,  of  a  rock,  the  surface  of  which 
was  "covered  with  the  unburied  remains  of  infants"  in 
Hong-Kong  harbour.* 

The  information  below  is  taken  by  Mr  Norman  from 
the  late  Chinese  Times: — "In  its  columns  I  found  the 
following  account  of  infanticide  in  the  Province  of 
Shansi.  One  man  who  had  been  in  the  employ  of  a 
foreigner  for  two  years  and  had  received  good  wages, 
put  his  little  girl  to  death,  because,  as  he  said,  he  could 
not  afford  to  feed  her.  A  woman,  without  solicitation, 
told  one  of  the  foreign  ladies  that  she  had  killed  five 
children  in  order  to  go  out  as  a  nurse,  and  that  her 
husband  compelled  her  to  do  it.  '  Yes,  it  was  a  great 
sin,*  she  said,  *but  I  could  not  help  it'  A  man  who 
passes  for  a  gentleman,  volunteered  the  information 
that  he  had  allowed  two  of  his  girls  to  die  for  want  of 
care.  '  Only  a  small  matter.  We  just  wrapped  them 
up  in  bed-clothes,  and  very  soon  they  were  gone.     I  am 

^  Records  of  Shanghai  Conference^  1890,  p.  293. 
*  Society  in  China^  1894,  Robert  K.  Douglas,  p.  355. 


ORPHANAGES  341 

a  poor  man,  girls  are  a  great  expense  and  earn  no 
money,  and  as  we  already  had  two,  we  concluded  we 
could  not  keep  any  more/  The  testimony  of  a  Chinese 
teacher  is  as  follows: — 'Infanticide  is  very  common 
among  the  poor,  and  even  people  in  pretty  easy  circum- 
stances. There  is  hardly  a  family  where  at  least  one 
child  has  not  been  destroyed,  and  in  some  families  four 
or  five  are  disposed  of.  Nothing  can  be  done.  As 
soon  as  the  little  ones  are  born,  they  are  laid  aside  and 
left  to  perish.  Girls  are  more  often  destroyed,  but  boys 
are  very  often  killed.  The  officials  know  it,  but  say  it 
is  something  they  cannot  control.'  Another  man,  who 
is  now  a  member  of  a  Christian  Church,  says  that  in 
his  village  there  is  hardly  a  family  that  has  not  destroyed 
two  or  three  children.  And  once  more,  a  woman  said 
that  *it  was  very  common  for  poor  people  to  go  into 
rich  families  as  wet-nurses  because  they  received  good 
wages ;  and  in  fact  they  often  destroyed  their  babies 
that  they  might  do  so.*  Such  a  state  of  things  is 
terrible  in  the  extreme,  and  the  worst  feature  about  it  is 
that  there  seems  to  be  no  public  or  individual  conscience 
against  it :  even  well-informed  and  otherwise  respectable 
people  look  upon  it  as  a  matter  of  course."  A  lady 
contributor  to  the  North  China  Daily  News  furnishes 
the  following  statistics: — "I  find  that  i6o  Chinese 
women,  all  over  50  years  of  age,  had  borne  631  sons, 
and  538  daughters.  Of  the  sons,  366,  or  nearly  60  per 
cent,  had  lived  more  than  ten  years;  while  of  the 
daughters,  only  205,  or  38  per  cent,  had  lived  ten  years. 
The  160  women,  according  to  their  own  statements, 
had  destroyed  158  of  their  daughters;  but  none  had 
ever  destroyed  a  boy.  As  only  four  women  had  reared 
more  than  three  girls,  the  probability  is  that  the 
number  of  infanticides  confessed  to  is  considerably 
below  the  truth.  I  have  occasionally  been  told  by  a 
woman  that  she  had  forgotten  just  how  many  girls  she 
had  had  more  than  she  wanted.  The  greatest  number 
of  infanticides  owned  to  by  any  one  woman  is  eleven." 


342  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

''Wife-selling  and  child-sellinsf  are  also  common,  and 
during  the  last  famine,  a  party  of  beggars  were  actuaUy 
observed  in  the  streets  of  Tientsin  with  baskets,  loudly 
crying,  Mai  nil  (Girls  for  sale) !  in  one  of  the  baskets 
being-  four  baby  girls  with  pinched  faces  and  wizened 
limbs."  ^ 

In  North  China,  children  are  very  seldom  the 
victims  oi  intentional  infanticide,  but  merely  victims  of 
superstition,  we  learn  from  Mr  Chester  Holcombe,  of 
the  U.S.  Legation  in  Peking,  in  1895.  For  example, 
a  sick  child  is  treated  well,  and  with  anxious  care,  till  all 
remedies  fail,  and  death  is  api)arently  near.  In  that 
case  it  is  stripped  and  placed  on  the  floor  just  outside 
the  outer  door  of  the  room.  The  parents  leave  it  there 
and  watch  the  issue.  If  it  survive,  "it  is  a  true  child  of 
their  own  flesh  and  blood,"  if  it  dies,  "it  never  was 
their  own  child,  but  an  evil  spirit  seeking  adniission  to 
their  hearthstone  in  order  to  work  them  mischief  and 
ruin."  Hence  it  is  thrown  into  the  street  to  be  gathered 
up  by  the  dead  cart.  Mr  Holcombe  says  he  has  seen  a 
cart  with  "at  least  a  hundred  at  once  thrown  in  as 
garbage,"  and  that  he  knew  a  high  Chinese  official  in 
Peking  to  admit  that,  "  One  night  last  week  I  was  obliged 
to  throw  his  (three-years-old  infant  son  s)  body  outside 
the  door."  No  power  could  induce  the  parents  to  give 
such  a  child  proper  burial  in  the  family  resting-place  for 
the  dead,  as  it  would  mean  its  adoption ;  and  what 
sane  Chinese  would  adopt  an  evil  spirit  into  his  own 
family  ?  * 

This  fact,  indeed,  had  been  noticed,  years  before,  by 
Dr  Nevius  also,  who  remarked  that  the  large  number  of 
castaway  bodies  of  children  "  is  often  regarded,  though 
uiyustly,  as  evidence  of  the  prevalence  of  this  crime," 
when  they  were  rather  the  victims  of  superstition  which 
denied  them  burial,  as  "  it  is  supposed  that  their  bodies 

*  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  East,  1895,  Henry  Norman, 
pp.  289-91. 

'  TAe  Real  Chinaman,  1895,  Chester  Holcombe,  pp.  167*8-9. 


ORPHANAGES  343 

were  inhabited  by  the  spirit  of  a  deceased  creditor  of  a 
previous  state  of  existence."^ 

A  China  Inland  missionary  tells  us  of  holding  a  Bible 
class,  in  October  1895.  "Among  them  was  a  woman, 
bright,  careless,  full  of  fun.  She  told  me,  with  the  utmost 
indifference,  that  she  had  had  six  little  girls,  aU  of  whom 
she  had  got  rid  of  in  their  babyhood  .  .  .  she  did  not 
want  them,  and  did  not  all  her  neighbours  do  the  same  ?  "  * 

Rev.  Dr  Martin  wrote  in  1896 : — "One  man  whom 
I  questioned  on  the  subject  said  cynically  that  they  put 
their  girls  out  of  the  way  because,  if  spared  to  grow  up, 
they  would  bring  disgrace  on  their  parents.  Another 
confessed  that  several  of  his  female  children — I  forget 
how  many — ^had  been  smothered  in  the  hour  of 
birth.  .  .  .  [Infanticide]  prevails  in  many,  but  not  in  all 
parts  of  the  Empire.  It  is  almost  unknown  at  the 
capital,  where  it  is  forestalled  by  nipping  the  young  life 
at  an  earlier  stage."  * 

"  In  certain  districts  near  Amoy,"  says  Archdeacon 
Moule,  in  1902,  "only  seven-tenths  of  the  female 
infants  are  allowed  to  live.  .  .  .  Heathen  societies  exist 
(notably  at  Ningpo),  whose  object  is  to  subsidise  poor 
parents  who  have  a  daughter  born,  and  punish  those 
who  have  been  found  guilty  of  the  practice."  * 

Concerning  Fu-kien,  once  more.  "  To  illustrate  the 
prevalence  of  female  infanticide,  and  also  the  growing 
confidence  of  the  people  in  the  missionaries  [Church  of 
England  Zenana  Mission],  it  may  be  mentioned  that 
during  1902  no  less  than  fifty  girl-babies  were  left  on 
the  doorstep,  or  near  the  compound  of  the  Mission- 
house,  or  saved  by  Christians  in  country  places  and 
brought  into  Ku-cheng.  .  .  ."'^ 

^  Chifia  and  the  Chinese^  1869,  Rev.  John  L.  Nevius,  p.  252. 

'  Among  Hills  and  VcUleysin  West  Chinoy  1901,  Hannah  Davies,p.  88, 

»  A  Cycle  of  Cathay^  1896,  W.  A.  P.  Martin,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  pp.  107-8. 

*  Missions  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  The  China  Mission^ 
1902,  Yen.  A.  £.  Moule,  B.D.,  p.  14. 

^  A  Century  of  Protestant  Missions  in  ChinOy  1907,  edited  by  D. 
MacGillivray,  p.  57. 


344         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  1903,  Professor  Parker  informs  us  that  "  there  is 
a  practically  continuous  chain  of  evidence  from  the 
eleventh  century  down  to  this  day,  establishing  in  the 
most  unmistakable  way  the  fact  that  the  custom  of 
drowninsr  female  infants  has  been  specially  noticeable 
along  the  southern  coasts  and  around  the  gnreat  lakes  of 
China."  ...  In  Sz'ch'wan  the  practice  is  rare,  because 
"  there  is  a  large  export  of  women  to  Shen  Si,  which 
last  province  has  recently  been  devastated  by  Mussul- 
man rebellions.  There  was  also  a  heavy  export  to 
Shanghai,  and  I  found  that  the  native  customs  officials, 
with  the  connivance  of  the  police,  used  to  charge  an 
export  likin  [provincial  customs  duty]  of  about  2s.  a 
female."  He  also  notes  an  export  from  Wenchow  to 
Shanghai,  with  consequent  decrease  of  infanticide  in  the 
adjoining  country.^ 

And  the  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference  of 
1907,  which  included  among  its  members,  Protestant 
workers  from  every  part  of  the  Empire,  thought  it 
necessary  to  urge  "on  the  whole  missionary  body  the 
importance  of  enlisting  the  sympathies  of  Christian 
women  in  China  in  the  fight  against  opium,  impurity, 
footbinding,  the  destruction  of  girl-babies,  and  early 
betrothals."  * 

In  the  matter  of  the  purchase  of  children,  the 
Chinese  Military  Attache  in  Paris  enlightens  us  to  this 
effect: — "There  exists  also  for  poor  parents  another 
means  of  escaping  privation,  and  protecting  the 
existence  of  their  female  children ;  this  is  the  sale 
of  the  child  to  a  rich  family,  in  which  it  will 
become  a  servant.  The  word  'sale'  shocks  delicate 
ears;  but  we  must  not  be  alarmed  at  words.  The 
children  sold  are  brought  up  by  the  family  that 
buys  them,  and  employs  them  until  their  majority,  in 

^  China  past  and  present^  1903,  Professor  Edward  H.  Parker,  pp. 
396-7. 

'  China  Centenary  Missionary  Conference^  1907  {North  China  Daily 
News  Office),  p^  27. 


ORPHANAGES  345 

Its  service.  They  are  then  downed,  and  afterwards 
married,  and  become  free.  These  women  who  have 
been  purchased  children  are  able  to  receive  every  right 
that  maternity  confers,  and  their  origin  is  not  a  himiili- 
atingr  stain."  ^ 

Legislation  on  this  subject  also  seems  to  be  of  little 
avail.  "The  practice  of  selling  children  is  common, 
and  though  the  law  makes  it  a  punishable  offence, 
should  the  sale  be  effected  against  the  will  of  the 
children,  the  prohibition  is  practically  ignored."* 

Mr  Freeman  Mitford — who  was  in  China  in 
1865  —  presents  us  with  the  following  remarkable 
document,  in  which  we  must  observe  that  the  pro- 
visions of  the  law  seem  to  have  been  observed,  as 
''  the  child  was  simply  in  a  fever  of  delight  at  leaving 
her  parents." 

"  This  is  a  bill  of  sale.  Wan  Ch^ng,  of  the  village 
of  Wan  Ping,  has  a  child  the  offspring  of  his  body, 
being  his  second  daughter  and  his  seventh  child,  aged 
eight  years.  Because  his  hou^e  is  poor,  cold,  and 
hungry,  reljdng  on  what  has  passed  between  a  third 
person  and  his  wife,  he  has  determined  to  sell  his 
daughter  to  one  named  Ma.  He  sells  her  for  twenty- 
eight  dollars."* 

1x1  1872,  H.M.  Consul  at  Shanghai  informs  us: — 
".The  practice  of  selling  children  is  nevertheless 
tolerated,  and  it  has  become  very  prevalent  of  late 
years,  owing  no  doubt  to  the  vast  amount  of  poverty 
and  wretchedness  which  everywhere  prevails."* 

In  a  western  suburb  of  Canton — so  we  learn  from 
Mrs  Gray — the  wife  of  the  American  Consul  "saw  a 
man  in  the  street,  who  had  a  shawl  tied  round  him. 

1  The  Chinese^  painted  by  themselves^  1884,  CoL  Tcheng  Ki-tong, 
pp.  125-6. 

'  China^  Manners  and  Customs^  1882,  Robert  K.  Douglas,  p.  91. 

«  The  Attach^  at  Peking^  1900,  A.  B.  Freeman  Mitford,  C.B., 
pp.  242.3. 

*  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathay,  1872,  W.  H.  Mcdhurst,  p.  92. 


346         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

From  this  shawl  peeped  out  three  little  heads.  A 
crowd  of  women  gathered  round  this  man,  the  shawl 
was  undone,  and  the  poor  little  baby  girls  were  passed 
round  from  one  woman  to  another  to  be  examined. 
Then  the  bargaining  began ;  the  highest  bidder  offered 
5  cents  for  one  of  the  little  creatures,  but  the  man 
demanded  6  cents,  and  refused  to  sell  either  of  the 
infants  under  this  price."  ^ 

In  1895,  I^r  Morrison  states  that  ''during  the  last 
year  it  is  estimated,  or  rather  it  is  stated  by  the 
Chinese,  that  no  less  than  three  thousand  children 
from  this  neighbourhood  [Chaotong],  chiefly  female 
children  and  a  few  boys,  were  sold  to  dealers  and 
carried  like  poultry  in  baskets  to  the  capital.  .  .  . 
Female  children  were  now  offering  at  from  3s.  4d.  to  6s. 
each.  .  .  .  Starving  mothers  would  come  to  the  mission, 
beseeching  the  foreign  teachers  to  take  their  babies, 
and  save  them  from  the  fate  that  was  otherwise 
inevitable.  .  •  .  One  mother  I  met,  who  was  employed 
by  the  mission,  and  told  the  missionary  in  ordinary 
conversation,  that  she  had  suffocated  in  turn  three  of 
her  female  children  within  a  few  days  of  birth,  and 
when  a  fourth  was  born,  so  enraged  was  her  husband 
to  discover  that  it  also  was  a  girl,  that  he  seized  it  by 
the  legs,  and  struck  it  against  the  wall  and  killed  it.  .  .  . 
A  man  came  to  me,  who  for  a  long  time  used  to  heap 
up  merit  for  himself  in  heaven  by  acting  as  city 
scavenger.  Early  every  morning  he  went  round  the 
city,  picking  up  dead  dogs  and  dead  cats  in  order  to 
bury  them  decently — who  could  tell,  perhaps  the  soul 
of  his  grandfather  had  found  habitation  in  that  cat? 
While  he  was  doing  this  pious  work,  never  a  morning 
passed  that  he  did  not  find  a  dead  child,  and  usually 
three  or  four."* 

Of  the  Chinese  Foundling  Hospitals.     From   Dr 

>  Fourteen  Months  in  Canton^  1880,  Mrs  Gray,  pp.  136-7. 
»  An   Australian  in   ChinOy  1895,  G.  E.  Morrison,  M.B.,  CM., 
F.R.G.S.,  pp.  100-1-2. 


ORPHANAGES  347 

Lockhart  we   gfather  some  statistics   concerning  the 
native  institution  at  Shanghai: — 

1841.  184S. 

22  35 


114  51 

34 

58  26 

78  58 

35  42 


Children  remaining  from  former  year 
Received  at  the  gate  in  the  current  year 
From  Sung-kiang-fu 
Sent  out       .... 
Died  .... 

Remaining  on  the  books    . 

Many  of  the  children  (says  Dr  Lockhart)  are  suffering 
from  disease  when  they  are  received,  and  die  in  three  or 
four  days  afterwards,  and  according  to  the  Report, 
more  than  half  the  deaths  take  place  thus  early ;  but, 
even  after  this  deduction,  the  rate  of  mortality  in  the 
establishment  is  still  excessive.^ 

Mrs  Gray  visited  the  Chinese  Foundling  Hospital, 
Canton,  where  she  tells  us,  **a  most  sad  spectacle 
presented  itself  to  our  eyes.  The  building  is  very  dark 
and  dreary,  and  the  little  ones  told  a  sad  tale  of  neglect 
with  their  starved  pinched  faces. .  Many  of  them  look 
like  little  shrivelled-up  monkeys.  These  poor  unfortun- 
ate infants  are  all  girls,  sent  to  the  asylum  by  fathers 
disappointed  of  the  hope  of  having  sons,  and  not  caring 
for  the  expense  and  trouble  of  bringing  up  these  poor 
and  uncared-for  female  children.  The  little  things  are 
I)arted  from  their  mothers,  often  when  only  a  few  hours 
old,  and  in  this  hospital  as  many  as  three  are  often 
given  to  one  woman,  to  be  nourished  by  her.  TRe 
greater  number  soon  die,  and  one  must  look  upon 
them  as  the  more  fortunate,  as  those  who  live  are  sold 
as  slaves,  or  are  brought  up  to  a  life  worse  than  slavery. 
.  .  .  From  all  accounts  it  seems  to  be  true  that  the 
custom  of  killing  female  children  is  still  practised, 
particularly  in  those  districts  occupied  by  the 
Hakkas."^ 

Mr   Thomson   amplifies    the   foregoing   from   the 

^  The  Medical  Missionary  in  China,  1861,  Wm.  Lockhart,  F.R.C.S., 
F.R.G.S.,  p.  26. 

'  Fourteen  Months  in  Canton,  pp.  52-3. 


348         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

experience  of  Dr  Kerr.  "  One  wet  nurse  has,  at  times, 
as  many  as  three  infants  to  feed,  and  she  must  herself 
be  reduced  to  starvation  allowance,  as  her  pay  is  only 
about  eight  shillingrs  a  month.  Many  of  the  nurslings 
die,  as  might  be  expected,  whilst  those  who  survive  are 
sold  for  about  three  shillings  apiece.  It  is  mostly 
female  children  who  are  brought  to  this  benevolent 
institution,  for  girls  are  esteemed  nothing  but  encum- 
brances to  poor  parents  in  China,  the  reproach  of  their 
mothers,  who  ought  to  give  birth  to  boys  alone.  These 
foundlings  are  bought  by  the  wealthy,  and  brought  up 
as  servants,  or  concubines  ;  or  else  they  are  disposed  of 
to  designing  hags,  who  purchase  them  on  speculation, 
and  reserve  them  for  a  more  miserable  fate.  This 
custom  of  investing  in  girls  as  speculative  property, 
and  of  rearing  them  carefully  until  their  personal  attrac- 
tions will  command  a  high  market  value,  is  one  of  the 
worst  aspects  of  that  traffic  in  slaves,  which  is  carried 
on  without  shame  or  concealment  all  over  Chinese  soil."  ^ 

Mr  Henry  tells  us  in  1884- — Many  who  do  not 
destroy  their  children  outright,  do  so  in  a  modified 
form  by  sending  them  to  the  native  foundling  houses. 
The  largest  of  these  is  in  the  eastern  suburbs  of 
Canton,  supported  by  Government.  "  The  funds  being 
administered  in  the  usual  Chinese  way,  only  a  small 
proportion  reach  the  end  for  which  they  are  ostensibly 
given.  .  .  .  They  are  kept  in  this  place  for  six  months, 
during  which  time  one  half  of  them  die  from  exposure 
and  general  want  of  care.  Those  who  survive  are 
disposed  of  to  anyone  who  will  take  them  for  20  cents 
each  and  a  present  to  the  nurse.  Reliable  statistics 
show  that,  of  those  who  survive,  four-fifths  go  into  the 
hands  of  a  class  of  women  known  among  the  Chinese 
as  '  devil  grannies,'  whose  sole  business  is  to  buy  and 
bring  up  girls  for  immoral  purposes."* 

Mr  Thomson,  who  we  gather  visited  China  in  187 1, 

^  Through  China  with  a  Camera^  1898,  John  Thomson,  F.R.G.S.,  p.  86. 
'  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  pp.  309-ia 


ORPHANAGES  349 

and  has  informed  us  as  to  Canton,  continues : — **  The 
Amoy  Hospital  is,  however,  conducted  on  rather  more 
liberal  principles  than  that  in  Canton ;  for  if  anyone 
here  wishes  to  obtain  a  child,  he  may  get  one  free  of 
charge,  provided  that  he  can  deposit  suitable  credentials 
as  to  his  own  respectability.  One  of  the  resident 
Christian  missionaries  informed  me  that  he  felt  con- 
vinced that  25  per  cent,  of  the  female  children  were 
destroyed  at  birth.  The  natives  themselves  make  no 
secret  of  this  crime,  and  I  saw  one  old  woman  who 
confessed  to  having  made  away  with  three  of  her 
daughters  in  succession.  They  excuse  their  misdeeds 
on  the  ground  of  extreme  poverty,  and  they  certainly 
are  poor  and  wretched  to  a  degree  I  had  no  conception 
of  before  I  visited  their  abodes."  ^ 

We  may  now  give  some  account  of  the  massacre  of 
the  Sisters  of  Charity  at  Tientsin,  in  1870 — ^first  refresh- 
ing our  memory  concerning  the  state  of  affairs.  M* 
Edmund  Plauchut,  then,  reminds  us  that  by  the  Treaty 
signed  at  Tientsin  in  1858,  the  port  was  thrown  open 
to  foreign  trade,  and  in  1861  a  British  Consulate  was 
established  there.  The  memory  of  the  sack  of  Peking 
by  the  Anglo-French  forces  was  still  fresh,  and  hatred 
of  the  "foreign-devils"  fiercer,  and  if  possible,  more 
bitter  in  Tientsin  than  elsewhere,  for,  so  far,  its  people 
had  had  very  little  intercourse  with  Europeans.  Only 
amongst  the  more  enlightened  of  the  Chinese  was  the 
fact  recognised  that  the  time  for  opposition  to  the  entry 
of  foreigners  was  gone  by,  and  that  if  the  country  were 
not  opened  from  within,  it  would  be  forced  open  from 
without,  and  the  dismemberment  of  the  Empire  become 
inevitable.  Previous  to  the  outbreak,  the  relations 
between  Paris  and  Peking  were  considerably  strained, 
and  the  long  smouldering  fire  broke  into  flame  in 
Tientsin.* 

^  Through  China  with  a  Camera^  p.  100. 

'  China  and  the  Chinese^  1899,  Edmund  Plauchnt  (translated  and 
edited  by  Mrs  Arthur  BellX  pp.  193,  199. 


350  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

"The  establishment  of  an  orphanagfe  under  the  care 
of  the  Sisters  of  Mercy,  at  Tientsin,"  says  Sir  Robert 
Douglas,  "had  aroused  considerable  ill-will  on  the  part 
of  the  people,  who  credited  the  Sisters  with  all  the 
horrors  which  at  such  times  are  chargred  without  proof 
or  reason  agfainst  the  missionaries.  Unhappily,  while 
the  feelings  of  the  people  were  being  thus  stirred  up  by 
the  promoters  of  mischief,  a  peculiarly  fatal  epidemic 
broke  out  in  the  orphanage;  and  the  rumour  spread 
abroad  that  the  Sisters  were  murdering  their  charges 
wholesale.  An  angry  mob  surrounded  the  building  and 
demanded  admission.  The  Sisters,  thinking  it  wise  to 
humour  the  crowd,  invited  five  of  their  number  to  come 
in  and  inspect  the  premises.  At  an  ill  moment,  the 
French  Consul,  M.  Fontanier,  thinking  the  arrange- 
ment derogatory  to  an  institution  of  France,  drove 
the  inspectors  from  the  building.  This  action  further 
infuriated  the  people;  and  the  district  magistrate 
warned  the  Consul  that,  unless  an  inspection  were 
submitted  to,  he  would  not  be  responsible  for  the 
consequences.  The  Consul  refused  to  listen  to  these 
words  of  warning,  and  evidently  failed  to  realise  the 
depth  of  feeling  that  had  been  aroused.  The  fury  of 
the  mob  was  now  directed  against  him  as  well  as 
against  the  Sisters ;  and  a  surging,  stone-throwing 
crowd  collected  in  front  of  the  Consulate.  Being  now 
thoroughly  alarmed,  Fontanier  made  his  way,  followed 
by  his  clerk,  to  the  yam&i  of  Chunghow,  the  Superin- 
tendent of  Trade.  Not  getting  the  assurances  he 
demanded  from  this  official,  he  rushed  out  into  the 
crowd,  pistol  in  hand.  Of  the  subsequent  details 
nothing  is  exactly  known  ;  what  soon  became  apparent 
was  that  the  Consul  and  his  clerk  were  beaten  to  death. 
The  mob,  now  being  mad  with  excitement,  set  fire  to 
the  Roman  Catholic  Cathedral,  and  rushed  off  to  the 
orphanage  to  wreak  their  vengeance  on  the  Sisters."* 
Eight  Sisters  were  murdered,  and,  according  to  M. 

^  Europe  and  the  Far  East^  1904,  Sir  Robert  K.  Douglas,  pp.  134-5. 


ORPHANAGES  351 

Plauchut,  their  Superior  was  draggfed  to  a  post  not  far 
off  and,  having  been  bound  to  it,  the  Chinese  inflicted 
on  her  all  the  tortures  in  which  they  are  so  terribly 
skilled,  finally  cutting  her  body  into  small  pieces.  The 
remaining  nuns  were,  one  and  all,  first  outraged  and 
then  murdered,  their  home  and  church  set  fire  to,  and 
their  mangled  bodies  thrown  into  the  flames.^ 

The  children  appear  to  have  been  cared  for  by  the 
Chinese  authorities — as  we  learn  from  a  native  version 
of  the  occurrence : — "  The  children  taken  to  the  Futai 
are  much  visited  by  benevolent  men.  Generally  the 
visitors  come  with  some  provisions,  and  upon  seeing 
these,  the  little  creatures  fold  their  hands  and  say 
grace ;  they  usually  tell  them  not  to  do  so,  or  they  will 
have  to  go  without  the  presents.  The  clever  infants 
may  then  be  seen  partaking  of  the  repast  offered,  but — 
say  grace  afterwards." « 

Concerning  the  conduct  of  the  Sisters,  we  learn 
from  Dr  Thin  that  "a  gentleman  at  Tientsin,  who  is 
Consul  for  several  Treaty  Powers,  and  is  a  paid  servant 
of  Chung-How,  has  made  himself  unpopular  for  the 
rest  of  his  life  that  he  may  spend  in  China,  by  a  series 
of  misrepresentations  in  the  newspapers,  which  have 
since  been  completely  refuted,  whose  object  was  to 
insinuate  that  the  Sisters  were  to  blame  for  bringing 
their  destruction  on  themselves."^ 

And  Mr  Michie  tells  us  ''  there  was  readiness  in 
certain  foreign  official  quarters,  to  dwell  on  undefined 
'indiscretions.'  It  was  too  easily  assumed  in  the 
beginning  that  the  practice  of  the  Sisters  of  Charity  of 
purchasing  destitute  children  reasonably  excited  the 
suspicions  of  the  people.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  however, 
as  was  admitted  afterwards,  this  alleged  practice  of  the 
Sisters  was  entirely  imaginary."  * 

1  China  and  the  Chinese^  p.  201. 

>  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1871,  pp.  75-6. 

'  The  Tientsin  Massacre^  1870,  George  Thin,  M.D.,  pp.  8-9. 

4  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  vol.  ii.,  p.  243. 


352  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  his  comments  on  the  Missionary  Circular  of  the 
followingf  year,  H.M.  Minister  thus  wrote  to  Wen 
Siang: — "Referring  to  the  Tientsin  massacre.  Your 
Excellency  explains  that  it  was  the  result  of  the  people  s 
exasperation  against  Romanism;  and  you  express  a 
fear  lest,  after  the  severe  punishment  inflicted,  and  the 
ample  indemnities  awarded,  Christians  should  be 
emboldened  to  gfo  to  greater  lengths  than  heretofore 
in  the  direction  which  is  unpopular. 

**  I  have  communicated  to  the  Prince  of  Kung  the 
expression  of  my  Government's  dissatisfaction  at  the 
tardiness  and  incompleteness  with  which  that  fearful 
crime  was  disposed  of.  I  am  persuaded  that  no  foreign 
Government  has  thought  otherwise  of  the  action  of  the 
Chinese  Government;  and  that,  so  far  from  sharing 
Y.  E.'s  belief  in  the  encouragement  of  Christians  to 
greater  boldness,  the  evil  for  which  all  Powers  alike  are 
on  the  watch  is  the  molestation  of  those  who  it  has 
been  shown  can  be  molested  with  so  little  fear  of 
consequences  to  the  aggressors.  It  is  vain  to  attempt 
to  trace  the  evil  deed  to  its  authors ;  to  discover  who 
criminally  commenced  the  agitation  against  the 
Romanists ;  to  whom  it  occurred,  while  not  a  child  was 
missing,  to  revive  the  horrible  calumny  that  the 
Romanists  were  kidnapping  children  for  hateful 
purposes.  It  is  sufficient  for  my  present  purpose  to 
repeat  what  I  had  the  honour  to  observe  to  the 
Prince  of  Kung  in  my  despatch  of  gth  July  last,  that 
the  Government  is  responsible  for  that  ignorance  of  the 
people  which  alone  can  render  possible  their  perpetra- 
tion of  an  act  so  barbarous  upon  a  pretext  so  ridiculous  ; 
and  the  fact  that  the  people's  continuance  in  such 
darkness  is  due  to  a  want  of  enlightenment  on  the 
part  of  the  Government,  will  not  be  held  to  excuse  the 
Government  when  foreign  life  and  property  is  jeopardised 
by  the  simple  people  who  the  Government  is  not  wise 
enough  to  teach."  ^ 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1872,  p.  17. 


ORPHANAGES  35S 

Finally,  M.  Plauchut  tells  us,  that  in  1876,  another 
party  of  Sisters  re-opened  a  hospital  and  some  schools 
on  the  same  lines  as  their  predecessors — "apparently 
in  total  ignorance  of  the  dangfers  surrounding  them." 
They  went,  he  says,  "although  it  was  well  known  that 
there  was  no  abatement  in  the  bitterness  of  the  feeling 
against  foreigners,  and  that  the  mandarins  were 
especially  averse  to  female  missionaries."^ 

We  will  conclude  by  presenting  the  more  attractive 
side  of  orphanage  work  in  China.  First,  Baron  de 
Hubner — a  Catholic  nobleman — in  1871 : — 

"At  a  short  distance  from  Sft-kia-wei  is  a  house  of 
education  and  an  orphanage  under  the  care  of  some 
Sisters  (Les  Religieuses  Auxiliatrices  des  Ames  du 
Purgatoire).  The  Superior,  a  young  lady  of  most 
pleasing  exterior,  a  soft  and  yet  intelligent  face,  did  the 
honours  of  her  establishment  with  the  grace  and  easy 
manners  of  a  person  in  the  highest  society.  Her 
French  is  the  pure  Parisian  of  the  Faubourg  St 
Germain,  from  which  she  came  to  bury  herself  in  this 
terrible  solitude,  and  to  consecrate  the  best  years  of 
her  life,  her  health,  and  probably  life  itself,  to  the 
arduous  duties  of  her  vocation.  .  .  .  We  were  taken  to 
the  orphanage,  the  Salle  dasile  of  the  babies,  brought 
to  the  Sisters  by  their  families  or  picked  up  in  the 
street.  These  poor  little  creatures,  all  girls,  who,  when 
they  arrive,  are  just  bundles  of  skin  and  bone,  devoured 
by  vermin,  and  generally  full  of  disease  and  wounds,  are 
baptised,  washed,  their  wounds  dressed,  and  if  they 
survive,  brought  up  in  this  house,  and  married  to  their 
co-religionists,  or  else  placed  as  servants  in  Christian 
families.  We  went  into  one  of  the  large  rooms.  It 
was  spacious,  beautifully  clean,  and  well  ventilated. 
All  along  the  walls  are  ranged  cradles,  each  containing 
two  children,  placed  head  to  foot  A  number  of  Sisters, 
leaning  over  them,  were  tending  them  with  the  utmost 
care.    Strange  and  marvellous  change  in  these  little 

^  China  and  ike  Chinese^  ppi  203-4. 

Z 


354  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

existences,  which  reckon  only  a  few  hours !  Yesterday 
these  poor  little  creatures  had  been  thrown  on  a  dungr- 
heap,  left  to  be  devoured  by  the  pigs,  or  to  expire  in  a 
slow  and  horrible  agony.  To-day  they  have  found 
mothers,  who,  to  save  them,  have  come  from  the 
uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  on  wings  of  God-like 
charity."  1 

Of  the  Jesuit  orphanage  **  for  children  of  the  lower 
classes  who  have  been  brought  here  by  their  parents," 
M.  de  Hiibner  remarks: — "A  thing  which  is  curious 
and  difficult  to  explain  is,  that  the  number  of  children 
has  considerably  augmented  since  the  terrible  massacres 
of  Tientsin  last  year,  which  made  such  a  sensation 
throughout  the  Empire."^ 

In  Manchuria,  Mr  James,  in  1888,  found  that  the 
orphanages  "are  capitally  managed  by  the  Sisters,  and 
farms  are  attached  to  some  of  them.  The  children  look 
as  rosy  and  chubby  as  a  mother's  heart  could  desire, 
and  the  training  is  of  the  highest  possible  value,  raising, 
as  it  does,  a  community  of  moral,  God-fearing  men  and 
women  amongst  a  race  eminently  selfish,  cruel,  and 
prone  to  gross  self-indulgence."^ 

Rev.  T.  M.  Morris,  who  came  to  China  in  1890,  as 
Inspector  on  behalf  of  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society, 
also  inspected  the  Catholic  Foundling  Hospital  at 
Hankow,  and  "could  not  but  admire  the  Christian 
benevolence  of  these  good  women,  who  were  so  nobly 
devoting  themselves  to  the  service  of  these  poor  children 
in  a  strange  land.  It  is  an  industrial  rather  than  an 
educational  establishment :  the  teaching  only  occupies 
two  hours  a  day,  and  does  not  go  beyond  reading  and 
religious  instruction."* 

At  Ichang,  Mrs  Bishop  visited  the  hospital  and 
orphanage,    "both  under  the  charge  of  French  and 

1  A  RambU  round  the  Worlds  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hiibner  (translated 
by  Lady  Herbert),  vol.  ii.,  p.  197.  *  Ibidy  p.  194. 

'  The  Long  White  Mountain^  1888,  H.  £.  M.  James,  p.  202. 
*  A  Winter  in  North  Chinoy  1892,  Rev.  T.  M.  Morris,  pp.  186-7. 


ORPHANAGES  355 

Belgfian  Sisters,  comely  women  with  much  grace  and 
Sreniality  of  manner,  in  which  the  loving,  all-embracing 
maternal  instinct  finds  its  winning  expression.  The 
hospital,  which  is  on  the  ground  floor,  was  crowded, 
indeed  overcrowded,  and,  as  is  usual  in  Roman  hospitals 
in  China,  the  doctor  and  much  of  the  medical  treatment 
were  Chinese,  the  aid  of  the  foreign  doctor  (a  medical 
missionary)  being  called  in  in  surgical  cases.  .  .  .  The 
Bishop  told  me  that  the  Chinese  do  not,  as  formerly,  bring 
orphans  and  foundlings  in  numbers  to  their  keeping; 
indeed  I  gathered  that,  in  Ichang  at  least,  the  day  for 
this  is  past.  I  can  only  hazard  a  guess  at  the  reasons. 
These  may  be  the  anti-foreign  spirit  which  has  been 
stirred  up  recently;  the  increasing  competition  of 
orphanages  founded  by  charitable  Chinese ;  the  partial 
disappointment  with  the  temporal  results  of  conversion  ; 
and  perhaps,  above  all,  the  excessive  mortality  which 
prevails  in  these  institutions,  very  much  owing  to 
the  fact  that  the  infants  are  brought  to  them  in  great 
numbers,  either  dying  or  suffering  from  disease,  or  in 
such  a  feeble  and  emaciated  state  that  they  are  unable 
to  assimilate  their  food."^ 

Rev.  Lord  William  Cecil — who,  it  may  be  remem- 
bered, preached  at  the  Centenary  Missionary  Con- 
ference in  Shanghai,  in  1907 — in  one  of  a  series  of 
articles  on  "Mission  Work  in  China,"  alludes  thus 
sympathetically  to  the  orphanages:  —  "The  fourth 
method  is  chiefly  followed  by  Roman  Catholics,  and  is 
both  merciful  and  fruitful.  The  Chinese  often  cast  out 
their  baby-girls  and  leave  them  to  die ;  and  in  several 
places  in  China  for  many  years  the  Sisters  have  received 
them  into  orphanages.  We  saw  several  of  these 
orphanages,  and  pretty  but  pathetic  sights  they  were. 
The  children  were  very  happy  in  the  peaceful  Christian 
life  of  the  convent,  still  it  was  pathetic  to  see  the  poor 
cripples,  whose  own  mothers  had  no  love  for  them, 

>  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
p.  loa 


358  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

befittinsT  that,  before  admitting  an  individual  to  the 
privileges  of  religion,  he  should  be  examined  as  to 
whether  he  had  undergone  any  sentence  or  committed 
any  crime.  If  the  examination  be  in  his  favour,  he  may 
become  a  Christian ;  if  the  contrary,  he  should  not  be 
allowed  to  become  one,"  ^ 

On  this  last  H.M.  Minister  observes,  in  his  letter 
to  W6n  Siang: — "In  Article  6  it  is  proposed  that  no 
Chinese  of  bad  character  should  be  allowed  to  embrace 
Christianity  ;  and  instances  are  given  of  persons  in  the 
Far  West  Provinces  who,  after  entering  the  profession, 
continued  to  commit  the  gravest  offences.  If  this  be  the 
case,  why  were  the  offenders  not  seized  and  tried  by  the 
district  authorities?  It  is  vain  to  lay  the  blame  for 
their  action  upon  the  few  missionaries  within  their 
jurisdiction.  They  have  not  hesitated  to  lay  violent 
hands  upon  the  missionaries  themselves.  In  Kweichow, 
only  the  year  before  last,  three  Romish  missionaries 
were  seized  by  the  authorities,  and  one  of  them  died 
of  the  ill-treatment  he  received.  I  do  not  understand 
how  the  power  of  the  mandarins  can  be  less  over  their 
own  countrymen.  As  to  the  exclusion  of  all  but  good 
men  from  the  profession,  the  Christian  religion,  as 
every  treaty  sets  forth,  is  for  the  teaching  of  men  to 
become  virtuous.  Is  it  not,  then,  the  duty  of  its 
teachers,  like  the  philosopher  Mencius,  to  turn  away 
none  who  desire  to  be  converted:  'Not  to  scan  the 
past,  neither  to  reject  those  who  tender  themselves.'"* 

The  case  against  the  missionary  is  put  into  concrete 
form  by  Mr  Gorst,  thus : — "  The  foreigners,  themselves, 
are  in  many  cases  foolish  enough  to  interfere  with  the 
public  functionaries  on  behalf  of  Christian  converts 
who  have  been  brought  before  the  tribunals.  It  often 
happens,  for  instance,  that  a  Chinaman  who  has 
adopted  the  new  faith,  and  has  consequently  been 
compelled  to  break  with  the  family  community,  becomes 

Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (3),  1 871,  p.  14, 
«  JW.  (l),  1872,  p.  |6, 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  359 

involved  in  a  dispute  as  to  his  share  of  the  inheritance, 
which  he  naturally  wishes  to  take  with  him.  The 
disputants  will  perhaps  bring  the  matter  before  a 
magistrate ;  and  the  missionary,  actuated  no  doubt  by 
the  best  of  motives,  and  merely  wishing  to  see  fair  play, 
puts  in  his  oar  on  behalf  of  his  protests.  It  is  unneces- 
sary to  point  out  the  consequences  of  such  an  act,  or 
to  dilate  on  the  impolicy  and  tactlessness — to  use  no 
stronger  term — of  interfering  with  the  course  of  justice 
— or  injustice — in  a  foreign  country,  particularly,  one 
might  add,  in  a  country  which  guards  the  integrity  of  its 
institutions  with  such  a  jealous  pride  as  China."  ^ 

Writing  in  1901,  Mr  Savage- Landor  tells  us: — 
''Roman  Catholics  have  probably,  though  unconsciously, 
done  more  towards  producing  ill-feeling  than  any  other 
missionaries  in  China,  though  it  must  be  said  for  them, 
on  the  other  hand,  that  they  have  also  accomplished 
ten  times  more  good  than  all  the  others  put  together. 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  occupy  an  official  position 
in  the  Heavenly  Empire,  and  they  often  exert  their 
rights  by  unduly  protecting  the  converts  (not  the  best 
class  of  Chinese  by  far)  to  an  extent  that  is  somewhat 
vexatious  to  the  non-Christian  population.  In  Roman 
Catholic  villages,  for  example,  all  persons  of  other 
creeds  are  excluded,  and  the  missionaries  have  not  only 
the  spiritual  guidance  of  the  communities,  but  become 
absolute  rulers.  The  converts  cherish  the  belief  that 
to  pay  the  taxes  to  the  nearest  mandarin  is  about  all 
that  is  required  to  make  them  good  citizens,  the  priests 
taking  care  to  protect  them  in  case  of  any  offence 
against  the  law  of  the  country  other  than  non-payment 
of  taxes.  Again,  the  Catholic  priests,  with  their 
fatherly  love  for  the  converts,  constantly  interfere  in 
rows  between  their  folks  and  the  neighbouring  villages, 
or  between  the  people  and  officials.  This  is  a  constant 
source  of  friction."  * 

^  ChifM^  1899,  Harold  £.  Gorst,  pp.  176-7. 

'  China  and  the  Allies^  1901,  A.  Henry  Savage- Landor,  vol.  i.,  pp.  17-8 


360  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

"It  is  customary,"  Mr  Brown  remarks,  "for  the 
friends  of  Protestant  missionaries  to  answer  the  critics* 
charge  of  interference  in  native  lawsuits,  by  statinsr 
that  it  does  not  lie  against  them,  but  only  against  the 
Roman  Catholics,  the  rule  of  the  Protestant  missionary 
being  to  avoid  such  interference,  save  except  in  rare 
and  extreme  cases.  Mr  Alexander  Michie,  however, 
in  an  address  at  Shanghai  in  1901,  declares  that 
Protestant  missionaries  are  not  entitled  to  such  exemp- 
tion, and  that  while  they  may  not  interfere  so  frequently 
as  the  Catholics,  they  nevertheless  interfere  often 
enough  to  bring  them  under  the  same  condem- 
nation/'^ 

In  1906,  the  correspondent  of  The  Times  finds  an 
unsatisfactory  feature  in  "the  frequent  interference  of 
Catholic  missionaries  in  the  interior  in  native  lawsuits, 
leading  sooner  or  later  to  breaches  of  the  peace  and 
attacks  upon  the  innocent.  Surely  the  psychological 
moment  has  come  when  the  Vatican  should  place  itself 
in  direct  relations  with  the  Chinese  Government,  should 
forbid  indiscriminate  interference  in  lawsuits,  and 
should  exercise  disciplinary  control  over  its  missionaries. 
The  present  position  is  unsatisfactory  and  anomalous, 
and  does  injury  to  France  and  other  Catholic  Powers 
and  to  the  good  name  of  the  Church,  while  it  leads  to 
constant  trouble,  much  of  which  could  be  avoided  by 
the  appointment  of  a  Legate  or  Nuncio  to  Peking."* 

As  Mr  Michie  has  already  told  us  (Part  IL,  Chapter 
VIL),  the  step  proposed  was  attempted  in  1885,  and 
the  appointment  of  Mgr.  Agliardi  as  Nuncio  revoked  at 
the  instance  of  the  French  Government. 

Rev.  Lord  William  Cecil  wrote,  in  1907: — "As  I 
went  out  to  China  I  read  a  book  by  M.  AUier,  which 
made  out  a  very  strong  case  from  the  Western  point  of 
view  against  the  Roman  missions  as  the  prime  cause  of 
the  Boxer  movement.     His  points  were  the  well-known 

^  New  Forces  in  Old  China^  1904,  Arthur  Judson  Brown,  p.  23a 
<  The  Times^  24th  April  1906. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  861 

ones  that  the  Romans  sought  for  temporal  power,  and 
that  they  irritated  the  people  by  interfering  in  lawsuits. 
I  was  rather  convinced  by  the  book  till  I  had  seen 
something  of  the  Roman  work,  and  had  heard  from 
impartial  sources  an  account  of  their  influence.  I  then 
felt  that  however  wrong  from  a  Christian  point  of  view 
their  action  was,  it  is  not  really  unpopular  in  China. 
The  interference  in  the  lawsuits,  though  reprehensible 
from  an  ethical  point  of  view,  is  looked  upon  by  the 
Chinese  as  so  much  the  right  thing,  that  I  realised,  as  a 
French  official  pointed  out,  that  their  action  was  the 
result  not  of  their  being  antipathetic  to  the  Chinese,  but 
rather  of  their  being  so  sympathetic  that  they  had 
adopted  a  Chinese  instead  of  a  European  standpoint. 
A  lawsuit  is  only  theoretically  decided  on  its  merits. 
Practically  a  man  who  has  the  most  influential  backing 
and  the  longest  purse  wins.  The  poor  Chinaman 
thinks  very  meanly  of  a  European  who  professes  to  be 
his  friend,  to  love  him  with  a  sacred  love,  yet  who  will 
refuse  to  give  him  that  support  which  is  necessary  for 
him  to  have,  if  he  is  to  get  justice  in  opposition  to  some 
rich  and  powerful  individual.  On  the  other  hand,  and 
not  inconsistently  with  this  explanation,  every  Chinese 
mandarin  condemns  this  practice  as  one  that  tends  to 
embroil  the  missionary  with  the  civil  power ;  but  I  must 
in  justice  add  that  none  would  allow  that  such  action 
was  peculiar  to  the  Roman  Catholics."^ 

Such  being  the  case  as  concerns  the  missionary,  it 
may  perhaps  be  of  interest  to  consider  a  little  testimony 
as  to  the  condition  in  which  a  Christian  convert  may 
find  himself 

"The  Chinese  keep  bacl^  as  might  be  expected 
of  them,"  wrote  Mr  Wade  to  Earl  Granville  (8th  June 
1 871),  "all  reference  to  the  barbarous  persecutions  of 
converts  and  missionaries  in  various  places,  if  not  at  the 
instigation  of  the  mandarins,  at  anyrate  with  their  full 
knowledge  of  what  was  passing,  and  have  scanty  data 
^  National  Review^  December  1907,  pp.  $71-2, 


362  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

for  some  of  their  charges  of  missionary  intervention  and 
pretentiousness."  ^ 

''It  often  happens  that  one  family  becomes  the 
possessor  of  an  entire  village,"  we  learn  from  Sir 
Robert  Douglas.  ...  In  such  cases  the  seniors  of  the 
clan  act  as  the  village  elders.  .  .  .  The  clan  seniors, 
however,  devote  their  attention  more  exclusively  to  the 
intimate  personal  relationships  of  their  members  than 
do  the  village  elders,  their  object  being  to  prevent 
scandals  within  their  ranks  rather  than  to  preserve 
public  order.  In  this  direction  they  have  been  found 
useful  fellow-workers  with  the  promoters  of  attacks 
upon  Christians,  and  in  the  provinces  of  Hunan  and 
Hupeh  they  jealously  guard  their  ranks  from  the 
imputation  of  heresy.  Any  member  who  is  suspected 
of  having  joined  the  foreign  religion  is  hailed  before  the 
clan  tribunal,  and  is  flogged  or  otherwise  tortured  in 
proportion  to  his  obduracy."  * 

"This  system  of  clans  is  at  present  an  obstacle  to 
the  spread  of  Christianity,"  wrote  Mr  Henry  in  1884- 
"  Large  bodies  move  slowly,  and  the  time  has  not  yet 
come  when  the  Chinese  are  converted  by  families.  It  is 
a  very  serious  thing  for  a  man  to  face  a  whole  hostile  clan 
with  the  confession  that  he  has  forsaken  the  religion  of  his 
fathers,  and  can  no  longer  pay  homage  at  the  tombs  and 
ancestral  shrines.  Expulsion  is  the  frequent  result  for 
bringing  disgrace,  as  they  consider  it,  upon  the  dan."  ' 

A  further  difficulty  is  thus  described  by  Sir  Robert 
Douglas.  "The  Chinese  have  allowed  Mohammedans 
to  live  in  their  midst,  and  to  hold  offices  of  all  ranks, 
without  imposing  on  them  the  slightest  disability,  and 
it  is  only  when  native  converts  decline  to  fall  into  the 
popular  customs,  and  to  take  part  in  the  national 
festivals  which  mark  the  seasons  of  the  years,  that  they 
come  into  collision  with  their  fellow-countrymen.     In 

^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1872,  p.  4. 

"  Society  in  Chinoy  1894,  Robert  K.  Douglas,  p.  115. 

'  The  Cross  and  the  Dragon^  1884,  Rev.  B.  C.  Henry,  pp.  42-3. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  363 

China,  as  in  other  polytheistic  countries,  innumerable 
deities  are  closely  interwoven  with  all  business  and 
pleasure,  and  with  every  act  of  public  and  private  life. 
To  renounce  these  gods  and  goddesses  is,  therefore,  to 
interfere  with  every  custom  and  practice  of  society.  It 
is  held  impossible  for  Christians  to  take  part  or  lot  in 
any  matters  polluted  by  the  stain  of  idolatry,  and  with 
holy  horror  they  decline  to  subscribe  to  the  celebration 
of  the  highdays  and  festivals  which  are  kept  at  the 
opening  of  springf,  the  solstices,  and  other  public 
holidays  in  the  year.  All  this  places  them  in  antagonism 
with  their  fellow-citizens."^  Col.  Howard  Vincent 
further  remarks  that  in  consequence  of  this.  Christian 
converts  "are  shunned  by  their  kindred,  and  often  find 
private  employment,  even  in  foreign  families,  as 
impossible  as  a  public  office." '  And  Mrs  Williamson 
in  no  way  surprises  us  when  she  remarks  [in  1884]  that 
''a  Chinaman  is  not  at  all  times  anxious  to  claim  his 
acquaintance  with  a  foreigner.  Not  unfrequently  it 
brings  down  upon  him  many  petty  annoyances  from  his 
neighbours.  Even  the  mandarins  sometimes  oppress 
those  known  to  be  friendly  to  the  outside  barbarian."'^ 

Yet  another  difficulty  is  thus  described  by  Mr 
Michie: — "The  right  given  in  the  French  treaty  of 
acquiring  land  and  building  houses  in  the  interior  is  one 
of  the  most  constant  causes  of  local  quarrel.  Real 
estate  in  China,  being  held  not  on  personal  but  on 
family  tenure,  can  only  be  rightfully  alienated  by  the 
common  consent.  A  dissentient  member  holding  out, 
or  reviving  his  claim  for  purposes  of  extortion  after 
assent  has  been  given  and  transfer  made,  may  become 
a  convenient  instrument  in  the  hands  of  agitators 
against  the  foreigners;  and  where  there  is  no  such 
dissentient  it  is  not  unusual  for  the  local  authorities  to 

1  China^  1899,  Professor  R.  K.  Douglas,  p.  370. 
'  Newfoundland  to    Cochin  China^  1892  (Appendix),  CoL   Howard 
Vincent,  C.B.,  M.P.,  p.  367. 

9  Old  Highways  in  China^  1884,  Isabelle  Williamson,  p.  163. 


364         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

create  one  by  forcible  means.  ...  A  buildinsr  was  made 
over  to  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society  by  a  Chinese 
family,^  every  precaution  being  taken  to  obtain  the 
unanimous  consent  of  its  various  branches.  When  the 
deed  had  been  signed  by  the  head  of  the  family  and 
other  responsible  members,  the  local  magistrate  ex- 
amined the  chief  of  the  clan,  denounced  him,  and 
punished  him  severely  by  bastinado.  Two  of  the 
signatories,  thus  intimidated,  disowned  their  own  act, 
thereby  invalidating  the  deed  by  non-unanimity."  * 

Public  feeling  with  regard  to  Christians  is  further 
evidenced  by  Colonel  Scott  Moncrieff,  who  quotes  from 
Dr  Morrison's  account  of  the  siege  of  the  Legations  in 
1 900.  "  The  enemy  were  working  their  way  ever  nearer 
to  them  [the  native  Christians].  Their  rage  to  reach  the 
Christians  was  appalling.  They  cursed  them  from  over 
the  wall,  hurled  stones  at  them,  and  threw  shells  to 
explode  overhead.  Only  after  the  armistice,  when  we 
received  the  Peking  Gazette^  did  we  find  that  the  word 
to  burn  out  and  slaughter  the  converts  had  come  from 
the  highest  in  the  land."'  ''Naturally,"  adds  Mr 
Savage- Landor,  "those  who  have  suffered  most  in  the 
Boxer  movement  have  been  the  native  converts. 
Hundreds  have  been  terribly  tortured,  burned  alive, 
massacred.  ...  In  their  hunt  for  native  Christians  the 
Boxers  adopted  a  singular  mode  of  identifying  them. 
Over  the  head  of  the  unfortunate  captive  a  magic 
mirror  was  held,  in  which  a  cross  (said  the  Boxers)  was 
to  be  plainly  reflected  were  the  person  a  Christian.  As 
the  magic  mirror  was  made  of  silvered  metal  slightly  con- 
vex, a  luminous  cross  was  invariably  visible  in  a  power- 
ful light,  so  that  the  poor  devils  arrested  on  suspicion 
were  always  mercilessly  put  to  death."* 

1  See  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (9),  1870,  p.  i. 
^  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900^  Alexander  Michie,  voL  ii.,  p.  235. 
'  EasUm  Missions  from  a  Soldier's  Standpoint^  1907,  Colonel  G.  K. 
Scott  Moncrie£^  CLE.,  p.  85. 

^  QMna  and  the  Allies^  1901,  A.  Henry  Savage-Landor,  voL  i.,  p.  20^ 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  366 

''Opposition  and  persecution,"  wrote  the  late  Dr 
Nevius,  "  have  marked  the  course  of  our  work  to  a  greater 
or  less  extent  in  every  district.  The  authority  of  the 
family  or  clan  is  often  invoked  to  overrule  the  individual 
in  his  determination  to  enter  the  new  religion.  Village 
elders  and  trustees  of  temples  unite  in  eflforts  to  exact 
from  Christians  contributions  for  theatres  and  the  repairs 
of  temples.  When  native  Christians  persist  in  asserting 
their  purpose  to  follow  their  own  convictions  of  duty, 
in  opposition  to  those  who  think  they  have  both  the 
right  and  the  power  to  control  them,  open  outbreaks 
ensue,  resulting  in  brutal  assaults,  house-burning,  and  in 
some  cases  driving  Christians  from  their  homes. 
Native  Christians  are  sometimes  arraigned  before  the 
local  magistrates  on  fictitious  charges ;  and  when  it  is 
found,  as  is  sometimes  the  case,  that  the  local  magis- 
trate is  only  too  glad  to  join  in  the  persecution,  false 
accusations  become  more  numerous,  and  old  lawsuits,  in 
which  the  Christians  were  parties,  are  revived.  In  these 
litigations  the  persecutors  have  every  advantage. 
There  are  among  them  those  familiar  with  all  the  arts 
and  intricacies  of  Chinese  lawsuits,  and  those  who  have 
friends  in  the  Ya-men,  and  money  for  bribery  when  it  is 
required.  Under  these  circumstances  the  Christians 
have  small  hope  of  justice.  Charges  are  brought 
against  them  with  such  a  show  of  plausibility,  and  such 
an  array  of  evidence,  that  officers  who  are  disposed  to 
act  justly,  as  I  believe  some  of  them  are,  may  almost  be 
excused  for  regarding  Christians  as  guilty  culprits  and 
treating  them  accordingly.  In  cases  of  great  injustice 
and  abuse,  missionaries  have  taken  up  the  complaints  of 
native  Christians,  appealed  to  their  consuls,  and  in  some 
instances  obtained  partial  redress.  It  must  be  acknow- 
ledged, however,  that  we  have  not  invariably  elicited 
correct  representations  of  these  cases ;  and  also  that, 
when  through  the  influence  of  the  foreign  teachers,  the 
tide  of  fortune  has  turned  in  favour  of  the  Christians, 
they  have  not  always  been  free  from  a  spirit  of  revenge 


366  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

and  retaliation.  Bitter  and  unjust  as  the  treatment  has 
been  which  our  Christians  have  often  received,  it  is  a 
growing  opinion  here  that  the  best  weapons  with  which 
to  meet  this  opposition  are  Christian  patience  and  for- 
bearance; and  that  the  surest  victory,  and  the  one 
which  will  be  followed  by  the  best  results  is  that  of  *  over- 
coming evil  with  good.'  We  are  less  and  less  disposed 
to  appeal  to  the  civil  power  on  behalf  of  our  people, 
except  in  extreme  cases."  ^ 

An  instance  of  "  incorrect  representation  "  is  chron- 
icled for  us  by  the  late  Mrs  Bishop.  "This  Catholic 
priest  mentioned  to  me,  as  among  the  trials  of  his 
missionary  vocation,  the  case  of  a  village  in  which 
nearly  all  the  inhabitants  placed  themselves  under 
Christian  instruction  with  a  view  to  baptism.  These 
villagers  had  a  suit  against  another  village,  in  which  the 
possession  of  a  certain  piece  of  land  was  the  point  in 
dispute.  French  influence  was  brought  to  bear,  and 
they  gained  their  case,  let  us  believe  justly,  after 
which  they  returned  en  masse  to  their  idolatrous 
practices."* 

Other  cases — ^possibly  numerous — can  no  doubt  be 
cited,  and  the  Western  mind  is  rightly  scandalised 
thereat,  for  hypocrisy  is,  as  is  well  known,  never 
practised  in  Europe. 

In  any  event,  rightly  or  wrongly,  the  Chinese 
convert  goes  before  the  courts ;  and  we  may  therefore 
extend  our  investigations  to  the  officials  and  procedure 
therein. 

"No  government  official,"  says  Mr  Colquhoun, 
"can  possibly  live  on  his  pay  in  China;  his  necessary 
expenses  many  times  exceed  it.  What  is  he  to  do? 
Immemorial  tradition  points  out  the  way.  The  ox  is 
not    muzzled    that    treads    out    the    corn.  ...  It    is 

1  Methods  of  Mission  Work  (Reprint),  1898,  Rev.  John  L.  Ncvius, 
D.D.,  pp.  45-6. 

«  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond,  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
p.  lOI. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  367 

astonisbingf  that  any  vestige  of  character  is  left  in  men 
who  have  gfraduated  in  the  official  school."  ^ 

Lord  Charles  Beresford  goes  into  detail: — "The 
provincial  officers  of  all  grades  receive  bare  pittances 
for  salary.  They  often  have  to  pay  very  large  sums 
before  they  take  office ;  borrowing  the  amount  of  the 
'squeeze'  from  Chinese  banks,  or  amongst  their  own 
friends.  The  consequence  is  that  the  officials  make  as 
much  as  they  can  during  their  term  of  employment,  in 
order  to  repay  themselves  for  the  amount  it  cost  them 
to  obtain  office.  In  addition  to  this,  they  expect  to 
pay  for  the  expenses  of  keeping  up  the  necessary  state 
of  their  position,  and  to  make  a  good  sum  over  as  a 
sort  of  retiring  allowance  when  their  period  of  office  is 
completed.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  unless  they  get  into 
disgrace,  they  usually  succeed  in  doing  all  this,  and  it  is 
therefore  perfectly  easy  to  understand  the  enormous 
leakage  in  the  revenue  collected  before  it  is  remitted  to 
Peking."^ 

Ludicrous  instances  of  malversation  are  available, 
of  which  the  following  may  be  sufficient.  "  Universal 
corruption  is,  at  the  same  time,  admittedly  rampant  in 
every  department  of  the  Administration,"  wrote  Mr 
W.  F.  Mayers,  Chinese  Secretary  of  Legation,  in 
his  Report  of  the  Famine  in  the  Northern  Provinces, 
"to  an  extent,  the  continual  revelation  of  which  in 
published  official  documents  might  well  seem  past 
belief.  .  .  .  The  distribution  of  grain  ordered  by 
Government  was  made  an  excuse  on  the  part  of  the 
clerks  and  underlings  for  the  levy  of  exactions  in  the 
shape  of  future  repayments,  stipulated  for  at  the  rate  of 
cent,  per  cent. ;  and  payments  in  money  are  stated  as  being 
actually  offered  by  individuals  for  permission  to  decline 
receiving  their  quota  of  relief."  (This  last  was  stated  in 
a  reply  to  a  Memorial  to  the  Throne  by  a  censor.)  ^ 

^  China  in  Transformation^  1898,  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun,  p.  260. 
2  The  Break-up  of  China^  1899,  Lord  Charles  Beresford,  pp.  358-9. 
^  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (2},  1878,  p.  6. 


368  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

"Some  time  agro,"  wrote  Mr  Henry  Norman,  in 
189s,  "the  turbulent  Chinese  of  Canton  attacked  the 
foreign  settlement  of  Shameen,  and  plundered  and 
destroyed  the  houses  of  the  resident  foreigners.  For 
this  the  Chinese  Government  was,  of  course,  compelled 
to  pay  a  large  indemnity.  At  the  time,  however,  the 
London  Mansion  House  Famine  Relief  Fund  had 
opportunely  been  collected  and  forwarded  to  China, 
and  this  sum  was  in  large  part  devoted  to  paying  the 
Shameen  indemnity."^ 

"  Large  sums  of  money,"  continues  Lord  Charles, 
"are  put  apart  [1899]  for  repair  and  maintenance  of  the 
roads  in  Peking,  but  it  is  only  the  officials  who  know 
where  the  money  goes  to.  A  Mandarin  gets  a  high 
salary,  and  a  large  budget  is  allowed  him  for  lighting 
the  Peking  roads.  I  was  informed  that  there  are  only 
six  oil  lamps  that  represent  this  outlay,  but  I  could  not 
ascertain  their  locality."* 

But  dealings  with  Chinese  officialdom  would  seem 
to  be  far  from  amusing  to  those  concerned,  if  we  may 
judge  from  the  wording  of  an  address  from  certain 
Chinese  merchants  of  Hong-Kong,  who  had  become 
British  subjects.  Therein  we  find  reference  to  the 
"tender  mercies  of  Chinese  officials,  who  have  thus 
golden  opportunities  for  filling  their  pockets,  or  paying 
off  old  scores" ;  to  "the  utter  corruption  and  squeezing 
propensities  of  the  native  officials,"  as  well  as  "  their 
revengeful  and  arbitrary  spirit"^ 

At  the  same  time,  it  must  be  allowed  that  the 
position  of  a  Chinese  magristrate  is  not  free  from 
difficulty.  Mrs  Bishop  remarks  that,  in  theory,  the 
relation  between  magistrates  and  people  in  China  is 
strictly  paternal.  His  whole  time  is  nominally  at  their 
disposal.  In  practice,  "a  man  has  to  bribe  his  way 
from  the  gate  to  the  judgment  seat,"  and  he  who  can 
do  so  "is  sure  to  see  his  petition  on  the  top  of  the  pile 

^  Peoples  and  Politics  of  the  Far  East^  1895,  Henry  Norman,  p.  283. 
*  The  Break-up  of  China^  p.  343.  *  Jbid^  pp.  217-9, 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  369 

on  the  magistrate's  table/'  This  gentleman  is  at  once 
"tax-commissioner,  civil  and  criminal  judge,  coroner, 
treasurer,  sheriff,  and  much  besides,  and  he  is  supposed 
to  have  an  exhaustive  knowledge  of  everything  within 
his  bounds.  And  withal  he  must  so  dexterously  regulate 
his  squeezes,  as  that  it  shall  be  possible  for  him  to  exist, 
for  upon  his  salary,  attenuated  as  it  is  by  forfeitures, 
he  cannot"  Into  the  midst  of  all  this  "comes  the 
foreigner  with  his  treaty  rights,  a  new  and  difficult 
element  to  deal  with,  and  who  may  be  an  arrogant, 
bullying,  ignorant  person."  So  that  the  official  is 
between  the  orders  from  Peking  to  respect  foreigners, 
and  the  anti-foreign  feeling  which  has  been  inflamed 
for  years  past  by  agitators,  certain  of  the  secret  societies, 
and  what  are  known  as  the  "Hunan  Tracts."  Any 
unintentional  indiscretion  of  a  foreigner  may  provoke  a 
riot,  and  when  one  occurs,  the  foreigner  lodges  a 
complaint,  is  backed  up  by  his  consul,  and  the  mandarin 
possibly  degraded.^ 

The  result  of  such  a  state  of  affairs  is  thus  stated 
for  us  by  a  Chinese  author : — "  Injustice  and  corruption 
have  been  the  normal  state  of  the  land.  Nobody 
expects  to  get  off  without  money  or  influence  in  any 
l^^al  proceedings.  The  fact,  therefore,  that  many 
Christians  have  been  helped  by  missionaries  to  obtain 
justice  according  to  the  laws  of  the  land,  is  a  sufficient 
excuse  for  the  ignorant  to  hate  missionaries.  Moreover, 
it  has  frequently  been  urged  that  the  Roman  Catholic 
priests  have  openly  helped  their  converts  in  their  law- 
suits, and  in  various  other  ways.  Of  course,  the 
position  of  the  missionary  is  a  very  trying  one.  With 
the  best  of  intentions  and  purest  of  motives,  the 
missionary  is  undoubtedly  bound  to  look  after  the 
interests  of  those  who  seemingly  have  incurred  the 
hostility  of  their  kinsmen,  simply  on  account  of  their 
religion.    A  mob  is  then  incited  against  the  Christians 

1  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F,  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 
pp.  256-7. 

2  A 


370  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

primarily  concerned,  and  in  the  ensuing:  scuffle  the 
whole  village  becomes  involved,  and  it  may  be  the 
missionary  is  killed  or  seriously  injured.  The  results 
are  terrible,  not  only  to  those  implicated  in  the  mob, 
but  to  all  in  the  villagre.  A  couple  may  lose  their  heads, 
but  all  are  *  squeezed '  to  pay  the  compensation  required 
to  indemnify  the  missionary's  friends  and  the  native 
Christians,  as  well  as  to  rebuild  the  chapels  and  other 
buildings.  It  is  safe  to  say  that,  in  every  anti-Christian 
riot,  the  consequence  is  that  a  large  number  of  innocent 
folks  have  to  suffer  in  consequence  of  the  misdeeds  of 
bad  characters.  In  other  cases,  the  mandarins  secretly 
encourage  or  connive  at  the  persecution  of  Christians, 
but  the  results  to  the  people  are  the  same.  All  the 
troubles  are  due  to  the  injustice  of  the  Government 
officials.  When  we  get  honest  magistrates,  who  treat 
Christians  and  non-Christians  alike,  we  seldom  hear  of 
trouble.  Whenever  an  official  is  coerced  to  do  his 
duty,  then  he  resorts  to  the  suicidal  policy  of  encourag- 
ing the  reckless  and  turbulent  elements  to  wreak  their 
vengeance  on  the  Christians."  ^ 

"  *  How,'  asks  the  European  mind,  'can  the  mission- 
ary interfere  with  the  administration  of  justice  in  the 
country?'  I  asked  that  question  many  times,"  writes 
Rev.  Lord  William  Cecil,  "and  the  gist  of  the  answer 
that  I  got  was,  that  the  mandarin  does  not  look  at  a 
lawsuit  primarily  as  an  opportunity  of  doing  justice,  but 
rather  as  an  opportunity  of  either  directly  or  indirectly 
improving  his  financial  position ;  directly  by  accepting 
a  bribe  if  it  is  big  enough  to  be  worth  his  acceptance, 
indirectly  by  making  friends  with  those  who  can  secure 
his  appointment  to  a  more  lucrative  post;  and  he  is 
firmly  impressed  with  the  fact  that  if  he  has  a  row  with 
a  missionary,  he  will  not  get  such  an  appointment."  * 

"As  long  as  people  keep  outside  the  yam^n,"  wrote 
Mr  James  in  1888,  "they  are  practically  beyond  reach  ; 

»  The  Chinese  Crisis  from  Within^  1901,  Wen  Ching,  pp.  322-3. 
*  "  Mission  Work  in  China,"  The  Times^  21st  September  1907. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  871 

but  once  a  lawsuit  is  originated,  there  is  no  finality 
to  the  extortion  except  the  exhaustion  of  one  of  the 
parties,  and  even  then  a  decision  may  be  evaded  if  there 
is  hope  of  the  other  party  continuing  to  make  '  presents/ 
This,  however,  is  true,  in  its  fulness,  only  in  cases  of 
disputed  property,  where  the  claims  are  sometimes 
difficult  to  resolve.  In  these  cases  the  Chinese  Courts 
are  veritable  Courts  of  Chancery  for  procrastination 
and  expense.  The  worse  forms  of  extortion  are  those 
practised  by  the  yam^n  underlings,  who  sometimes 
torture  in  order  to  extort  perquisites."* 

In  1 90s,  Wu  Ting-fang,  a  barrister  of  Lincoln's 
Inn,  memorialised  anent  the  administration  of  justice 
in  China.  His  memorial  was  approved  by  Imperial 
Edict  of  24th  April  of  that  year.  "  Recently  Wu  Ting- 
fang  drafted  a  new  code  of  procedure  in  civil  and  criminal 
cases.  The  work,  which  was  admired  as  a  literary  effort, 
suggests,  among  other  things,  trial  by  jury.  The  innova- 
tion is  regarded  with  dismay  by  litigants,  as  the  necessity 
of  having  to  bribe  a  jury  as  well  as  the  magistrate  must 
add  an  intolerable  burden  to  the  present  cost  of  litiga- 
tion. Wu  Ting-fang  retires,  discouraged  by  the  outlook, 
seeing  no  reasonable  prospect  of  the  reform  of  the 
judicial  system."  * 

So  much  for  Chinese  justice  in  general.  We  may 
now  investigate  its  dealings  with  its  "just  victim." 

''  It  is  to  be  deplored  that  misunderstandings  should 
arise  from  a  difference  in  our  codes,"  wrote  H.M. 
Minister  in  Peking  to  W6n  Siang,  in  June  1871,  but 
I  see  no  remedy  for  them  until  China  shall  see  fit  to 
revise  the  process  of  investigation  now  common  in  her 
courts.  So  long  as  evidence  is  wrung  from  witnesses 
by  torture,  it  is  scarcely  possible  for  the  authorities 
of  a  foreign  power  to  associate  themselves  with  those 
of  China  in  the  trial  of  a  criminal  case ;  and  unless  the 
authorities  of  both  nationalities  are  present,  there  will 

1  The  Long  WkiU  Mountain^  1888,  H.  £.  M.  James,  pp.  160-1. 
*  The  Times^  26di  May  1906. 


372  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

be  always  a  suspicion  of  unfairness  on  one  side  or  the 
other."  ^ 

"Torture  is  practised,"  says  Dr  Wells  Williams, 
"upon  both  criminals  and  witnesses,  in  court  and  in 
prison.  .  •  .  Neither  imprisonment  nor  torture  are 
ranked  among  the  five  punishments,  but  they  cause 
more  deaths,  probably,  among  arrested  persons  than 
all  other  means.  •  .  .  The  clauses  under  Section  L  in 
the  code  describe  the  legal  instruments  of  torture ;  they 
consist  of  three  boards  with  proper  grooves  for  com- 
pressing the  ankles,  and  five  round  sticks  for  squeezing 
the  fingers,  to  which  may  be  added  the  bamboo; 
besides  these  no  instruments  of  torture  are  legally 
allowed,  though  other  ways  of  putting  the  question 
are  so  common  as  to  give  the  impression  that  some  of 
them  at  least  are  sanctioned.  Pulling  or  twisting  the 
ears  with  roughened  fingers,  and  keeping  them  in  a 
bent  position  while  making  the  prisoner  kneel  on 
chains,  or  making  him  kneel  for  a  long  time,  are 
among  the  illegal  modes.  Striking  the  lips  with  sticks 
until  they  are  nearly  jellied,  putting  the  hands  in  stocks 
before  or  behind  the  back,  wrapping  the  fingers  in 
oiled  cloth  to  burn  them,  suspending  the  body  by  the 
thumbs  and  fingers  .  .  •  are  resorted  to  when  the 
prisoner  is  contumacious."* 

"  It  is  occasionally  possible,"  Archdeacon  Gray  tells 
us,  "to  see  witnesses  under  examination  before  these 
dark  tribunals.  But,  as  witnesses  are,  in  some  instances 
also  subjected  to  torture,  it  is  a  matter  of  no  ordinary 
difficulty  for  a  foreigner  who  is  ignorant  of  Chinese  to 
distinguish  which  of  the  two  unfortunate  men  kneeling 
before  the  judgment  seat  and  receiving  castigation  is 
the  prisoner,  and  which  is  the  witness."* 

'  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1872,  p.  16. 

s  The  Middle  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  WeUs  Williams, 
LL.D.,  voL  L,  p.  507. 

'  Chinoy  History  of  Laws^  Manners^  etc.^  1878,  John  Henry  Gray, 
M.A.,  LL.D.,  voL  i.,  p.  35. 


THE  UnGATION  QUESTION  373 

"  During  the  course  of  a  trial,"  says  the  Archdeacon, 
''  the  prisoner  is  asked  a  gfreat  many  leadings  questions 
which  have  a  tendency  to  criminate  him.  Should  his 
answers  be  evasive,  torture  is  at  once  resorted  to  as 
the  only  remaining  expedient.  Let  me  describe  a  few 
of  the  simplest  modes  of  torture.  The  upper  portion 
of  the  body  of  the  culprit  having  been  uncovered,  each 
of  his  arms — ^he  being  in  a  kneeling  posture — is  held 
lightly  by  a  turnkey,  while  a  third  beats  him  most 
unmercifully  between  the  shoulders  with  a  double 
cane.  Should  he  continue  to  give  evasive  answers, 
his  jaws  are  beaten  with  an  instrument  made  of  two 
thick  pieces  of  leather  sown  together  at  one  end,  and  in 
shape  not  unlike  the  sole  of  a  slipper.  Between  these 
pieces  of  leather  is  placed  a  small  tongue  of  the  same 
material  to  give  the  weapon  elasticity.  The  force  with 
which  this  implement  of  torture  is  applied  to  the  jaws 
of  the  accused  is,  in  some  instances,  so  great,  as  to 
loosen  the  teeth  and  cause  the  mouth  to  swell  to  such 
a  degree,  as  to  deprive  him  for  some  time  of  the  powers 
of  mastication.  Should  he  continue  to  maintain  his 
innocence,  a  turnkey  beats  his  ankles  by  means  of  a 
piece  of  hard  wood  which  resembles  a  school-boy  s 
ruler,  and  is  more  than  a  foot  long.  Torture  bf  this 
nature  not  unfrequently  results  in  the  ankle  bones 
being  broken.  Should  the  prisoner  still  persist  in 
declaring  his  innocence,  a  severer  mode  of  torture  is 
practised.  This  may  be  regarded  as  a  species  of  rack. 
A  large  heavy  trestle  is  placed  in  a  perpendicular 
position,  and  the  prisoner,  who  is  in  a  kneeling 
posture,  is  made  to  lean  against  the  board  of  it.  His 
arms  are  then  pushed  backwards  and  stretched  under 
the  upper  legs  of  the  trestle,  from  the  ends  of  which 
they  are  suspended  by  cords  passing  round  the  thumbs 
of  each  hand.  His  legs  are  also  pushed  backwards, 
and  are  drawn,  his  knees  still  resting  on  the  ground, 
towards  the  upper  leg  of  the  trestle,  by  cords  passing 
round  the  large  toe  of  each  foot.    When  the  prisoner 


374         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

has  been  thus  bound,  the  question  is  again  put  to 
him,  and  should  his  answers  be  deemed  unsatisfactory, 
the  double  cane  is  applied  with  gfreat  severity  to  his 
thighs,  which  have  been  previously  uncovered.  I  have 
known  prisoners  remain  in  this  position  for  a  consider- 
able time,  and  the  quivering  motion  of  the  whole  frame, 
the  piteous  moans,  and  the  saliva  oozing  freely  from 
the  mouth,  afforded  the  most  incontestable  evidence  of 
the  extremity  of  the  torture.  Upon  being  released  from 
the  rack,  they  are  utterly  unable  to  stand.  They  are  then 
placed  in  baskets,  and  borne  by  coolies  from  the  court  of 
justice  falsely  so-called  to  the  house  of  detention,  on 
remand.  In  the  course  of  a  few  days  they  are  once 
more  dragged  out  to  undergo  another  examination. 
Even  this  torture  occasionally  fails  in  extorting  a 
confession  of  guilt.  In  all  such  cases  another,  still 
crueller,  is  enforced.  The  prisoner  is  made  to  kneel 
under  a  bar  of  wood,  six  English  feet  in  length,  and  is 
supported  by  two  upright  pillars  or  posts  of  the  same 
material.  When  the  back  of  his  neck  has  been  placed 
immediately  under  it,  his  arms  are  extended  along  the 
bar,  and  made  fast  by  cords.  In  the  hollow  at  the 
back  of  his  knee-joints  is  laid  a  second  bar  of  equal 
dimensions,  and  upon  this  two  men  place  themselves, 
one  on  each  end,  pressing  it  down  by  their  weight  upon 
the  joints  of  the  prisoner's  knees,  between  which  and 
the  ground  chains  are  sometimes  passed  to  render  the 
agony  less  endurable.  This  bar  is  occasionally  removed 
from  the  under  part  of  the  prisoner's  knee-joints,  in 
order  that  it  may  be  made  to  rest  on  the  tendo  Achillis. 
When  in  this  latter  position,  the  same  amount  of 
pressure  is  applied  to  it  with  the  view  of  stretching 
the  ankle-joints.  I  have  twice  witnessed  this  mode  of 
torturing  a  culprit,  and  its  severity  on  both  occasions 
was  painfully  evident."  ^ 

We  have  now  to  see  this  beneficent   tribunal  in 
operation.     Baron  de  Hiibner,  who  visited  a  Court  of 

^  China^  History  of  Laws^  Manners^  ttc^  vol.  L,  pp.  33*4-5. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  375 

Justice  in  Canton,  under  the  gfuidance  of  the  same 
Archdeacon  Gray,  has  described  the  proceedings. 

"The  pretorium  or  judgment  hall,  a  little  oblong 
court,  is  close  to  the  great  prison.  The  judge  is  seated 
in  an  open  gallery,  with  a  table  before  him  loaded  with 
briefs.  On  his  right  is  a  clerk,  and  on  his  left  an  inter- 
preter, both  of  whom  are  standing.  At  a  few  steps  in 
front  of  the  table  is  the  place  reserved  for  the  accused. 
On  both  sides  are  five  or  six  subaltern  agents  of  the 
tribunal.  The  executioner  and  his  assistants,  leaning 
against  the  wall  alongside  of  their  instruments  of 
torture,  stained  and  rusty  with  blood,  await  the  signal 
to  make  use  of  them.  The  Archdeacon  and  I  place 
ourselves  by  the  side  of  the  interpreter.  Speaking 
in  a  low  voice,  which  is  the  only  concession  he  makes  to 
the  majesty  of  the  court,  my  guide  rapidly  translates 
for  me  the  essential  parts  of  the  interrogatory.  There 
is  not  a  single  spectator  save  the  two  strangers,  i.e.j 
ourselves.  Neither  the  judge  nor  his  assistant  take 
the  smallest  notice  of  us ;  they  pretend  not  even  to 
perceive  our  presence.  The  judge  is  a  man  of  about 
forty  years  of  age,  perhaps  fifty.  A  pale  face,  cat's 
eyes,  adorned  with  a  pair  of  enormous  glasses,  a  repul- 
sive expression,  his  dress  simple  but  cared  for,  his  nails 
like  bird's  claws,  on  his  thumb  a  great  jade  ring — ^his 
whole  person  respectable,  imposing,  and  hideous  to 
the  last  degree.  This  Chinese  Minos  bends  over  the 
table,  and  never  takes  his  eyes  off  the  two  sets  of 
papers,  one  of  which  is  written  in  black  ink,  and  the 
other  in  red.  Behind  his  seat  stand  his  servants. 
From  time  to  time  one  of  them  passes  a  long  pipe 
under  his  arm,  and  withdraws  it  quickly,  his  master 
contenting  himself  with  one  or  two  puffs.  Although 
the  judge  understands  and  speaks  the  southern  dialect 
perfectly,  he  is  supposed  to  know  nothing  but  the 
mandarin,  the  language  of  the  north;  hence  the 
necessity  of  the  interpreter.  He  never  himself  takes 
any  part  in  the  interrogatory.    That  is  the  business 


376  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

of  the  clerk  and  the  interpreter ;  but  he  directs  them 
by  saying  a  few  words  in  a  low  voice  from  time  to  time- 
There  is  the  most  profound  silence   throughout  the 
audience.    Shall   I  own  it?    The  look  of  the  judgre 
freezes  me  with  terror.    There  is  nothing  human  in 
that  bronze  face — not  a  trace  of  mercy  or  of  charity. 
I  look  about  me,  and  I  see  the  same  expression  on  alJ 
the  different  countenances.     I  try  and  put  myself  in  the 
place  of  the  accused,  and  feel  a  cold  perspiration  mount- 
ing to  my  brow.    They  brought  in  the  first  prisoner,  or 
rather  they  carried  him  in  in  a  basket.     Here,  on  this 
very  spot,  yesterday,  he  was  put  to  the  torture.    They 
broke  his  ankle-bones.    To-day,  he  is  simply  a  packet 
of  bones  and  flesh,   incapable  of  answering  a  word 
His  life  is  ebbing  fast.    On  a  sign  from  the  judge,  he 
is  carried  off.    A  young  man  of  the  lower  orders  is  now 
brought  in,  loaded  with  chains.     He  kneels  in  the  place 
set  apart  for  the  accused ;  they  always  kneel  before  the 
tribunal.    Fear  and  craft  are  combined  on  his  ignoble 
face,  where  crime  and  vice  have  left  indelible  traces. 
After  the  usual   questions   as    to   the  family  of  the 
accused,  his  parents  and  grandparents,  the  interpreter 
says    to    him:     'You   stole    thirteen    dollars?'    The 
accused  denies  it  obstinately.    On  a  slight  movement 
from  the  hand  of  the  judge  the  executioner  advances. 
At  the  sight  of  him  abject  terror  seizes  the  unhappy 
culprit.    He   hastens  to  own  it.     'Yes,  he  stole  the 
money,   but  it   was  from   hunger,  to  buy  rice.*    *In 
what  shop  ?    Was  it  in  such  or  such  a  street  ? '    (The 
scene  probably  of  some  other  crime — a  murder  perhaps, 
committed  by  this  very  man.)    Here  the  accused  turns 
pale,  hesitates,  sobs,  implores  the  mercy  of  the  judge, 
and  denies  the  crime  again.    The  interpreter,  who  till 
now  has  tried  to  intimidate  him,  takes  all  of  a  sudden, 
a  soft,  insinuating  voice.     'Why  deny  it,  my  child?' 
he  says,  '  own  it ;  and  you  will  then  only  have  to  praise 
our  tender  mercies.     Come  along ;  take  off  his  chains.' 
This  to  the  executioner,  who  obeys.     'And  now,  my 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  377 

child,  speak.'  But  'my  child'  is  not  so  easily  taken 
in.  Here  begins  a  struggle  between  these  two  men  of 
audacity,  lying,  and  ruse;  the  one  knowing  that  his 
life  is  at  stake;  the  other  his  reputation  as  inquisitor. 
The  coaxing  tone  of  the  latter  contrasts  with  the  look 
of  hatred  and  ever-growing  terror  which  may  be  read 
on  the  face  of  the  accused  At  last  the  poor  wretch 
persists  in  his  denial,  upon  which  the  judge,  in  a  low 
voice,  speaks  to  the  executioner,  who,  with  his  assist- 
ants, throw  him  down,  and  then,  squatted  on  his  heels, 
the  executioner,  counting  each  stroke  in  a  loud  voice, 
applies  at  least  a  hundred  blows  on  his  body  with  a 
long  bamboo.  I  own  I  almost  fainted  at  the  horrible 
sight,  and  my  excellent  Archdeacon  was  very  nearly  as 
bad.  The  assistants  looked  at  us  with  disdainful 
surprise.  Never,  as  long  as  I  live,  shall  I  forget  the 
screams  and  howls  of  this  poor  fellow.  After  some 
minutes,  however,  the  roars  ceased.  He  was  only  an 
inert,  bleeding  mass — impossible  to  proceed  to-day  with 
the  second  part  of  the  question — that  is  to  break  his 
legs.  They  drag  him  off,  therefore,  or  rather,  he  is 
carried  away."* 

"It  is  becoming  a  question,"  remarks  the  corres- 
pondent of  the  Times  in  Peking,  in  1908,  "whether 
some  remonstrance  should  not  be  addressed  to  the 
Chinese  Government  to  abolish  eunuchs  and  domestic 
slavery,  and  reorganise  the  administration  of  justice. 
Extraction  of  guilt  by  torture  is  still  universal  through- 
out the  Empire."  * 

The  prisons  appear  to  be  in  admirable  keeping  with 
the  rest  of  the  judicial  system.  In  1858,  Mr  Wingrove 
Cooke  found  that  "all  the  inmates"  of  one  he  inspected 
"were  squalid  and  half-starved,  swarming  with  vermin, 
and  covered  with  skin  diseases."* 

^  A  Ramble  round  the  Worldy  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hubner,  vol.  ii., 
pp.  399-402. 

^  The  TitneSy  22nd  September  1908. 

3  China^  1858,  George  Wingrove  Cooke,  p.  371. 


378  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

In  i860,  the  late  Lord  Loch  spent  some  time  in  the 
custody  of  the  Board  of  Punishments,  and  was  thus 
able  to  appreciate  the  arrangements  of  a  Chinese  prison, 
and  in  particular  the  fact  that,  besides  beatingr  and 
torture,  "there  is  a  small  maggot  which  appears  to 
infest  all  Chinese  prisons ;  the  earth  at  the  depth  of  a 
few  inches  swarms  with  them ;  they  are  the  scourge 
most  dreaded  by  every  poor  prisoner.  Few  enter  a 
Chinese  gaol  who  have  not  on  their  bodies  or  limbs 
some  wound,  either  inflicted  by  blows  to  which  they 
have  been  subjected,  or  caused  by  the  manner  in  which 
they  have  been  bound ;  the  instinct  of  the  insect  to 
which  I  allude  appears  to  lead  them  direct  to  these 
wounds.  Bound  and  helpless,  the  poor  wretch  cannot 
save  himself  from  their  approach,  although  he  knows 
full  well  that  if  they  once  succeed  in  reaching  his 
lacerated  skin,  there  is  the  certainty  of  a  fearful, 
lingering,  and  agonising  death  before  him.  My  right- 
hand  neighbour  on  the  bench  where  we  all  slept  was 
dying  from  the  inroads  of  these  insects ;  his  suffering 
was  great,  and  the  relief  his  fellow-prisoners  could 
afford  was  of  no  avail.  The  crowded  state  of  the  gaol 
brought  me  in  such  close  contact  at  night  with  this  poor 
fellow,  that  our  heads  rested  on  the  same  block  of  wood 
not  a  foot  apart.  The  thought,  as  I  lay  pinioned  and 
ironed,  unable  to  move  during  the  long  dark  nights, 
that  his  fate  at  any  moment  might  be  my  own,  was  at 
times  difficult  to  bear  with  calmness,  and  with  that 
outward  appearance  of  indifference  which  it  was 
necessary  I  should  maintain."^ 

In  187s,  Archdeacon  Gray  wrote  that  the  apart- 
ments or  cells  of  Chinese  prisons  resemble  cattle-sheds. 
"The  appearance  which  these  apartments  present  is 
most  uninviting,  not  simply  because  they  are  the  gloomy 
abodes  of  wretched  and  miserable  men,  but  for  the 

*  Personal  Narrative  of  Occurrences  during  Lord  Elgitis  Second 
Embassy  to  China  in  i860  (Third  Edition),  1900,  the  late  H.  B.  Loch  (Lord 
Loch),  pp.  1 14-5. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  379 

additional  reason  that  they  are  the  receptacles  for 
every  kind  of  vermin,  and  of  every  species  of  filth." 
The  prisoners  seldom,  if  ever,  can  wash  or  dress  their 
hair.  "  Moreover,  in  each  apartment  are  placed  tubs  to 
receive  the  urine  and  excrement  of  the  prisoners ;  and 
the  stench  arising  from  the  vessels  in  question,  more 
particularly  during  the  hot  season  of  the  year,  can,  we 
apprehend,  be  more  easily  imagined  than  described.  .  .  . 
So  great  is  the  mortality  in  Chinese  prisons,  that  a 
dead-house  is  regarded  as  a  very  necessary  adjunct.  .  .  . 
Prisoners  who  in  Chinese  prisons  are  confined,  are 
certainly,  in  point  of  appearance,  of  all  men  the  most 
abject  and  depraved.  Their  deathlike  countenances, 
emaciated  forms,  and  long,  coarse,  black  hair,  which 
according  to  prison  rules  they  are  not  allowed  to  shave, 
imparts  to  them  the  appearance  of  demons ;  and  fail  not 
to  convey  to  the  mind  of  the  beholder  feelings  of  horror 
which  are  not  indeed  easily  dispelled  or  forgotten."^ 

Mr  Geil  completes  the  picture  for  us  in  1904.  He 
inspected,  in  Luchow,  a  prison,  the  buildings  of  which 
suggested  "a  dilapidated  zoological  gardens,  where  in 
broken-down  sheds  the  beasts  are  human  animals, 
occupying  single  and  general  cages.  Inside  the  yamSn 
compound  there  is  a  gaoL  In  one  room  were  three 
prisoners  wearily  standing  in  heavy  cangues,  with  their 
heads  through  hinged  boards.  Chains  about  the  neck 
came  between  the  wood  and  their  bare  shoulders,  so 
that  the  poor  wretches,  when  standing,  bore  the  full  heft 
of  the  cangue  on  the  chains,  which  drove  down  into  the 
flesh.  To  rest  themselves  it  was  necessary  to  bend 
down.  In  that  cramped  position  there  would  be  relief, 
but  only  for  a  minute.  This  room  during  the  night 
would  contain  thirty  persons  huddled  together  like 
cattle.  Those  who  have  money  can  get  the  cangue 
placed  on  the  side  during  darkness,  and  thus  obtain  a 
little  rest.    From  the  yamen  gate  we  passed  outside  to 

^  IValks  in  the  City  of  Canton,  1875,  Yen.  John  Henry  Gray,  M.A., 
pp.  299-300-1. 


380  THE  CATHOUC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  detention  shed,  where  over  twenty  culprits  were 
packed  into  a  small  room.  The  gaoler  has  many  ways 
of  extorting  money  from  prisoners.  One  is  to  place  a 
pole  under  the  left  arm  and  fasten  it  against  the  wall, 
then  press  the  other  end  under  the  right  arm  until  it 
touches  the  wall.  This  act  often  crushes  the  breast- 
bone. Another  is  to  order  the  prisoners  to  pick  the  lice 
off  themselves  and  put  them  on  the  subject  of  extortion. 
A  more  cruel  one  is  to  tie  a  string  to  the  right 
thumb  and  to  the  great  toe,  and  pull  until  the  remaining 
toes  only  just  touch  the  floor.  This  devilish  device  has 
proved  effective  when  others  have  failed.  Torture 
seldom  fails  of  its  purpose.**^ 

"  Some  improvement  has  taken  place  in  the  gaols  of 
Tientsin  and  Tsi-nan-fu,  and  one  or  two  other  capitals 
where  there  are  foreigners  to  observe  what  is  going  on ; 
but  still,  throughout  practically  the  whole  Empire,  the 
judicial  methods  in  all  civil  and  criminal  cases,  for  the 
extraction  of  evidence  by  torture  and  flogging  are 
identically  the  same  methods  of  barbarism  which  have 
been  in  existence  for  centuries."* 

Commenting  on  the  circular,  Captain  Brinkley  sums 
up  thus  : — "  Of  course  the  question  of  permanent  interest 
is,  what  confidence  may  be  reposed  in  the  Tsung4i 
yizw^«V  accusation  ?  It  is  here  that  the  silence  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  presents  a  barrier  to  clear 
judgment.  These  heroic  men  never  open  their  mouths 
in  self-defence.  They  evidently  think  that  whatever 
suffering  the  charges  of  detractors  inflict  on  them,  must 
be  borne  patiently  and  in  silence  as  part  of  the  duty  they 
owe  to  their  cause.  In  this  respect  their  consistency 
is  splendid.  They  look  for  a  higher  judgment  than 
that  of  man.  No  testimony  offers,  therefore,  except 
that  of  the  Chinese,  or  of  men  who,  professing  a 
different  creed,  may  not  be  held  free  from  bias.  The 
unanimity   of  such    testimony,  however,  removes   all 

^  A  Yankee  an  the  Yangtze^  1904,  William  Edgar  Geil,  pp.  128-9. 
^  The  Times^  26th  May  1906. 


THE  LITIGATION  QUESTION  381 

possibility  of  doubting  that  the  state  of  affairs  in  1871 
was  pretty  much  what  the  Tsune-liYamin  represented 
it  to  be,  and  that  it  remains  so  to  this  day.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  must  be 
assumed  to  have  deliberately  weighed  the  advantages 
of  the  system  they  pursue.  They  are  eminently 
competent  men,  and  no  considerations  of  inconvenience 
or  suffering  for  themselves  would  possess  the  smallest 
weight  as  against  the  better  promotion  of  their  cause. 
That  they  would  gladly  submit  their  own  persons  to 
Chinese  jurisdiction,  if  they  thought  that  Christian 
propagandism  would  be  advantaged  by  such  a  step, 
admits  of  no  question.  But  the  welfare  of  their  converts 
belongs  to  a  different  range  of  reasoning.  The  admini- 
stration of  justice  in  China  presents  shocking  abuses. 
Torture  is  employed,  in  court  to  extort  confession,  in 
jail  to  extort  money;  witnesses  are  thrust  into  prison 
as  well  as  accused  persons ;  the  sufferings  incidental  to 
incarceration  cause  more  deaths  than  the  executioner's 
sword ;  the  connivance  of  minor  officials  can  always 
be  secured  to  prosecute  an  unjust  claim;  and  the 
consequences  of  becoming  involved  in  a  suit  where 
corruption  has  been  practised  successfully  by  an 
opponent,  or  where  prejudice  exists,  are  often  worse 
than  financial  ruin.  To  protect  their  converts  against 
such  abuses,  as  far  as  protection  is  possible,  may  well 
have  seemed  to  Roman  Catholic  propagandists  an 
inevitable  obligation,  and  to  withdraw  the  protection 
after  it  had  created  a  spirit  of  bitter  animosity  among 
the  non-Christian  population  can  scarcely  have  appeared 
a  thinkable  act.  Further,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that 
the  Governments  of  Europe  and  America  would  consent 
to  entrust  the  persons  and  property  of  the  missionaries 
to  Chinese  jurisdiction.  Whatever  the  missionaries 
themselves  might  choose,  their  countries  will  never 
officially  sanction  such  an  arrangement  until  China 
effects  reforms  justifying  it."^ 

^  China^  etc^  1904,  Captain  F.  Brinkley,  vol.  xii.,  pp.  142-3-4. 


CHAPTER  VI 

EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted,  in  view  of  the  large  number 
of  Catholic  schools  in  the  Empire,  that  so  little  evidence 
concerning  them,  from  non-Catholic  sources,  is  to  be 
found.  In  fact,  the  only  accounts  in  any  detail  concern 
the  Jesuit  establishments  near  Shanghai.  This  is  to  be 
accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  Shanghai  is  the  great 
rendezvous  for  Europeans  ;  comparatively  few  penetrate 
much  beyond,  and  those  who  do  have,  no  doubt,  other 
interests.  The  void  can  be  filled  in  from  the  tables  at 
the  end ;  but  as  far  as  this  part  of  the  book  is  concerned, 
we  must  adhere  to  unofficial  statement. 

In  1857,  Mr  Laurence  Oliphant  visited  the  Jesuit 
schools  at  Shanghai,  of  which  he  tells  us  :  ''I  was  struck 
with  the  intelligent  expression  of  the  youths*  counten- 
ances, and  the  apparent  affection  they  had  for  their 
teachers.  Instead  of  cramming  nothing  but  texts  down 
their  throats,  they  teach  them  the  Chinese  classics, 
Confucius,  etc.,  so  as  to  enable  them  to  compete  in  the 
examinations.  The  result  is,  that  even  if  they  do  not 
become  Christians,  they  have  always  gratitude  enough 
to  protect  those  to  whom  they  owed  their  education, 
and  perhaps  consequent  rise  in  life."^ 

'•The  Catholics,"  wrote  Dr  Edkins,  in  1858,  "have 
not  a  few  well-conducted  schools  in  China.  At  Seu-kia- 
wei  .  .  .  many  of  the  pupils  are  taught  the  art  of 
moulding  images  in  clay,  sculpture,  etc.    It  caused  us 

'  Mepunr  .  .  .  Laurence  Oliphant^  1891,  Margaret  O.  W.  Oliphant, 
voL  i.,  p.  229. 


EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS  383 

some  painful  reflections  to  see  them  forming  images  of 
Joseph  and  Mary  and  other  Scripture  personages,  in 
the  same  way  that  idol-makers  in  the  neighbouring 
towns  were  moulding  Buddhas  and  Gods  of  War  and 
Riches,  destined  too  to  be  honoured  in  much  the  same 
manner.  With  such  exceptions  as  this  we  could  not  help 
admiring  the  arrangements  of  the  school,  which  appeared 
to  be  large  and  efficient."^ 

It  would  seem  to  be  hardly  necessary  to  go  to  China 
for  material  for  "painful  reflections."  A  few  years 
later,  Mr  Coffin,  travelling  in  India,  inspected  the 
bazaars  at  Mirzapoor,  of  which  he  remarks : — *' A  visit 
to  these  stores  lets  us  into  the  secret  of  England's 
prosperity  .  .  .  the  little  brass  image  of  Krishna,  before 
which  the  Hindoo  woman  bows  in  worship,  came  from  a 
Birmingham  workshop."* 

In  1 86 1,  Captain  Blakiston,  Lieut-Colond  Sard,  Dr 
Barton,  and  Rev.  Mr  Schereschewsky  of  an  American 
mission,  tried  to  penetrate  via  the  Yangtze,  Tibet,  and 
Himalayas  into  India.  They  did  not  succeed,  but 
Captain  Blakiston  brought  back  a  detailed  chart  of  the 
river  for  840  miles,  a  comparison  of  which,  says  Colonel 
Henry  Yule,  R.E.,  "with  the  old  Jesuit  representations 
of  the  river,  as  given  in  D'Anville's  maps,  is  very 
favourable  to  the  general  correctness  of  the  latter."* 

About  1867,  Mr  Coffin,  an  American  traveller, 
visited  China.  Among  other  matters,  he  mentions 
''a  Foundling  Hospital  established  by  the  Jesuits 
[?  Catholics],  a  spacious  brick  building,  four  stories  in 
height,  with  a  church  edifice  attached.  Looking 
through  the  gateway  of  the  enclosure,  we  see  a  troop  of 
boys  in  the  garden — foundlings,  orphans,  and  some  who 
have  been  purchased  of  their  parents  to  be  trained  for 
the  Church.    The  interior  of  the  church  is  small ;  it  has 

1  ReltgiiminChina{StcoTiA  Edition),  1878,  Joseph  Edkins,  D.D.,  p.  170. 
'  Our  New  Way  round  the  WaHd^  1883,  Charles  Carleton  Coffin,  p.  165. 
'  River  of  Golden  Sand^  1883,  in  Memoir  of  Captain  Gill,  by  Colonel 
H.  Yule,  C.B^  R,E.,  p.  102. 


384  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

marble  floors,  altars  along  the  walls,  poor  pictures  of 
scenes  in  the  life  of  Christ  and  the  Saints,  tawdry  paper 
flowers,  and  a  great  show  of  tinsel  around  the  high  altar. 
At  one  of  the  side  chapels  a  Chinese  youngster  is 
kneeling,  kissing  the  tiles,  dipping  his  fingers  in  the  holy 
water,  and  making  the  sign  of  the  cross.  The  prayers 
are  in  Latin — just  about  as  intelligible  to  these  children 
as  Cherokee  or  Choctaw.  As  it  is  not  necessary  for  the 
worshipper  to  understand  what  he  is  mumbling,  he 
might  as  well  repeat  a  stanza  from  Mother  Goose, 
And  yet,  for  all  this,  Romanism  is  doing  a  work  in 
China  which  will  be  more  clearly  seen  hence  than  at  the 
present  time — that  of  bringing  the  people  to  acknow- 
ledge the  existence  of  one  God.  The  great  advantages 
obtained  by  the  French  priests — the  adroitness,  energy, 
perseverance,  unflagging  zeal,  and  wealth  of  the  Church 
on  account  of  the  restoration  of  property  confiscated 
two  hundred  years  ago — all  these  combined  influences 
will  go  far  toward  making  Catholicism  the  dominant 
religion  of  the  Empire.  In  this  hospital  we  have  a  good 
illustration  of  the  far-sightedness  of  the  Catholic  clergy. 
They  have  great  schemes  for  the  future.  These  chil- 
dren have  been  forsaken  by  fathers  and  mothers,  and 
the  priests  have  taken  them  up.  They  will  be  trained 
for  the  Church;  will  have  a  livelihood,  which  in  this 
country  is  an  important  matter,  and  their  power  will 
soon  be  felt  as  teachers,  priests,  and  missionaries 
throughout  the  land."  ^ 

The  authority  for  all  this  is  not  stated ;  nor  do  we 
gather  even,  how  Mr  Coffin  satisfied  himself  that  the 
prayers  of  the  child  in  question  were  in  Latin,  or  that 
he  did  not  understand  them  if  they  were.  Still, 
*'  Romanism  "  must  be  doing  a  work  in  China,  if  it  can 
satisfactorily  lead  people  to  acknowledge  the  existence 
of  one  God,  with  Whom  they  commune  in  prayers  they 
do  not  understand ;  eventuating  as  priests,  teachers, 
and  missionaries,  for  the  conversion  of  their  country! 

*  Our  New  Way  round  the  Worlds  pp.  355-6. 


EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS  386 

Nevertheless,  it  would  seem  that  some,  at  least,  get 
to  understand  what  they  say — even  in  Latin.  Professor 
Parker  remarks,  in  a  review  of  the  Journal  of  Father 
Ly — a,  Chinese  priest  who  kept  it  in  Latin,  1 746-1 763  : — 
''It  may  be  thought  remarkable  that  a  simple  Chinese 
priest  should  keep  his  diary  in  almost  faultless  Latin ; 
but  it  is  the  practice,  and  a  very  convenient  one  where 
so  many  conflicting  dialects  and  languasfes  are  spoken, 
for  all  Chinese  converts  of  the  higher  education  to  speak 
Latin,  and  to  correspond  in  that  language  with 
Europeans  of  all  nationalities."* 

About  1 87 1,  Baron  de  Hubner — a  Catholic— visited 
the  Jesuit  school  and  orphanage  at  S(i-kia-wei.  He 
tells  us  that  "the  scholars  pass  through  a  course  of 
classical  studies  in  the  Chinese  sense,  and  learn  every 
kind  of  useful  knowledge.  The  orphans  are  taught  all 
sorts  of  trades.  Each  of  these  young  men,  on  returning 
to  his  family,  will  bring  back  with  him  the  germs  of  a 
new  civilisation.  Everybody,  fathers  and  students, 
seemed  gay  and  happy  and  in  good  health.  The 
Superior  would  not  let  us  go  without  having  improvised 
a  little  concert.  Under  the  direction  of  a  Chinese 
father,  four  of  the  students  began  to  play  a  symphony 
of  Haydn's.  The  reverend  director  of  the  orchestra, 
with  a  huge  pair  of  spectacles  on  his  nose,  directed, 
cheered,  and  with  bdton  and  eye  kept  time  and  guided 
these  juvenile  virtuosi^  who,  fixing  their  little  eyes  on 
the  music,  and  perspiring  from  every  pore,  managed  to 
perform  very  satisfactorily  one  of  the  finest  compositions 
of  this  great  master.  Haydn  performed  in  China,  and 
by  Chinese !  Why  be  ashamed  to  own  it  ?  We  were  all 
greatly  touched  and  pleased."* 

The  same  gentleman  mentions  also  the  "  Museum  of 
Natural  History,"  at  the  P'ei-t'ang  [Catholic  Cathedral] 
in  Peking,  "which  is  unique  of  its  kind,  and  made  by 

*  The  English  HUtaricdl  Revuwy  April  1907. 

'  A  Ramble  round  the  Warld^  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hubner,  vol  ii., 
p.  195. 

2  B 


386  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

the  learned  Ahh6  David,  a  Lazarist.  The  objects  it 
contains  come  mainly  from  the  province  of  Che- Li. 
The  ornithological  part  of  this  rich  collection  is  the 
most  appreciated  by  the  learned."^ 

In  1872  we  learn  from  H.M.  Consul  at  Shangrhai 
that  the  "Romanist  missionaries  .  .  .  rely  mainly 
upon  educational  means  for  securing  adherents,  and 
although  the  process  must  necessarily  be  a  slow  one, 
yet  the  results,  when  these  come  to  exhibit  themselves, 
are  certainly  more  satisfactory,  as  regards  the  number 
and  permanency  of  the  conversions."* 

In  1874,  M.  Piassetsky  is  at  the  Jesuit  establishment 
at  Shanghai.  "  One  of  the  fathers  came  to  meet  us, 
and  offered  to  show  us  over  the  establishment,  which 
is  as  useful  as  it  is  interesting.  It  takes  in  foundlings, 
orphans,  children  of  all  ages,  from  new-born  babes  to 
those  nearly  grown  up,  and  has  been  established  for 
some  years.  Apart  from  Chinese,  they  also  teach 
French  and  Latin,  besides  a  general  notion  of  other 
subjects,  but  principally  philosophy  and  theology. 
Neither  are  trade  and  the  arts  by  any  means  neglected. 
We  were  shown  the  carpenter's,  locksmith's,  and 
shoemaker's  workshops,  and  the  studio  for  painting  and 
wood-carving,  the  last  entirely  devoted  to  religious 
subjects,  intended  for  the  Chinese  churches  and  their 
members.  The  young  Chinamen  who  worked  in  it 
were  quite  European  in  their  manner,  and  it  must  be 
owned  that  some  of  them  by  no  means  resembled  the 
Chinese  type,  which  made  their  origin  a  subject  for 
reflection.  The  reverend  father  conducted  us  to  the 
observatory,  where  he  showed  us  a  rather  complicated 
instrument,  I  confess  to  never  having  heard  of— the 
meteorograph  of  Father  Angelo  Secchi."* 

In    1883,   Mr  Colquhoun  remarks  concerning  the 

^  A  RdmbU  round  the  Worlds  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hiibner,  vol.  ii., 
p.  265. 

*  The  Foreigner  in  Far  Cathay^  1872,  W.  H.  Medhurst,  pp.  33-4. 

'  Russian  Travellers  in  Mongolia  and  China^  1884,  P*  Piassetsky» 
voL  i.y  p.  149. 


EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS  387 

river  at  Canton  :— "The  only  existing  map  of  the  river, 
and  indeed  of  South  China — with  the  exception  of  the 
portion  between  Canton  and  Wu-chau,  which  was 
surveyed  in  1859  by  Lieut.  Bullock,  R.N. — are  the 
Chinese  maps,  the  only  reliable  portions  of  which  are 
from  Jesuit  surveys."  It  appears  that  the  principal 
data  in  the  Ta-cking^'yi-funsr-ckik  (Imperial  Gazeteer), 
commenced  in  1862  and  completed  in  1869,  were  also 
derived  from  the  same  source.^ 

Dr  Wells  Williams  observes  "that  within  the  last 
twenty  years,  not  only  have  the  theological  schools  of 
the  Romish  missions  increased,  so  that  eighteen  were 
open  in  1859,  but  with  the  introduction  of  the  Sisters 
of  Charity,  many  thousands  of  young  children  are  taught 
needlework,  reading,  and  various  handicrafts  to  prepare 
them  for  useful  lives.  These  schools  exert  a  widespread 
and  lasting  influence."  * 

Appreciation  from  unexpected  quarters  is  always 
pleasant.  Dr  Fortescue  Fox  relates  that  "an  old 
resident,  now  a  pilot  on  the  great  river,  although  stating 
that  he  considered  the  only  sin  of  his  life  to  have  been 
the  subscribing,  when  a  child,  to  the  missionary  box, 
yet  even  he  bore  testimony  to  the  excellent  educational 
work  carried  on  by  some  French  Catholic  missionaries  in 
Central  China."' 

Dr  Fortescue  Fox,  himself,  found  that  "valuable 
educational  work  is  being  carried  on  at  Hankow,  and 
other  places  ;  and  as  regards  the  French  hospitals  and 
medical  charities,  these,  so  far  as  the  writer  s  observa- 
tion went,  are  well  administered  and  much  appreciated."  * 

From  the  students*  quarters  of  the  British  Legation 
in  Peking: — "Our  leading  teacher  belonged  to  a 
watch-making   family,  and    was  therefore   a    Roman 

1  Across  Chrysiy  1883,  Archibald  R.  Colquhoun,  p.  59. 
3  Tke  Middle  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  Wells  Williams, 
LL.D.,  vol.  ii.,  p.  310. 

'  OhservaUans  in  China^  1884,  Fortescue  Fox,  M.B.  (Lond.),  p.  22. 
«  IHd,  p.  39. 


388  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Catholic,  seeing  that  the  watchmakers  in  Pekingr  are, 
with  few  or  no  exceptions,  descended  from  the  pupils 
and  proselytes  of  the  old  Jesuits."^ 

"  The  value  of  a  series  of  scientific  or  other  books 
for  the  Chinese,"  Mr  John  Fryer  told  the  Missionary 
Conference  of  1890,  "depends  greatly  on  the  extent  to 
which  definite  rules  for  terminology  are  maintained 
throughout.  This  principle  was  evidently  well  under- 
stood by  the  Jesuit  missionaries.  I  have  sought  in 
vain  for  vocabularies  of  their  scientific  terms  in  Latin 
and  Chinese;  but  in  all  their  works  that  have  come 
under  my  notice  the  terminology  is  as  nearly  perfect  as 
can  be  imagined.  This,  perhaps,  goes  far  to  account 
for  the  great  favour  with  which  they  are  still  regarded 
by  native  scholars,  even  up  to  the  present  day."* 

Lord  Charles  Beresford  visited  "a  French  Jesuit 
mission  at  Shanghai,  a  most  powerful  organisation 
that  has  done  grand  work  in  China,  particularly  in 
connection  with  science."'  "To  this  mission  is 
attached  a  museum  of  Natural  History,  etc.,  and  an 
astronomical  and  meteorological  observatory.  In 
connection  with  the  latter  there  is  a  time-ball  on  the 
French  Bund  [Quay],  and  the  Fathers  hope  to  intro- 
duce Marconi's  system  of  wireless  telegraphy  between 
Sicawei,  Shanghai,  and  Woosung  for  signsdling  pur- 
poses. Under  the  direction  of  this  institution,  a  com- 
plete system  of  meteorological  observations,  embracing 
the  whole  of  the  China  Seas,  is  now  carried  out."  * 

A  staple  industry  of  Ch'^ngtu,  it  appears,  is  weaving, 
and  in  the  **  Religion  Guild  "  (Roman  Catholic  converts) 
there  are  500  looms.  "  The  Roman  Catholic  mission 
has  done  much  to  introduce  foreign  patterns."*^ 

*  IVkere  Chineses  drive^  1885,  T.  A.  D.,  p.  70. 

»  Records  of  the  Missionary  Conference^  Shanghai^  1890^  p.  537. 

*  The  Break-up  of  China^  1899,  Lord  Charles^Bere5ford,ipp.  11 3-4. 

*  European  Settlements  in  the  Far  East^  1900^  D.  W.  S.,  p.  1 12. 

^  Report  by  Consul-General  Hone  on  Province  of  Ss^chwany  China  (5), 
1904,  p.  91. 


EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS  889 

In  any  consideration  of  Catholic  missions  in  China 
the  work  done  by  the  nuns — European  and  Chinese — 
ousrht  not  to  be  omitted.  Unfortunately,  although 
they  conduct  orphanasfes,  schools,  and  hospitals,  very 
little  unofficial  information  is  on  record  concerninsr  their 
work. 

In  1858,  Dr  Edkins  visited  the  school  at  Ningpo 
"for  deserted  children  of  the  female  sex.  There  were 
seventy  of  them  at  the  time  enjoying  its  privileges.  .  .  . 
Buildings  new  and  very  extensive.  Seven  French 
Sisters  of  Mercy  conducted  the  school  .  .  .  received 
us  most  kindly,  and  permitted  us  to  inspect  the  whole 
establishment.  They  appeared  to  be  much  attached  to 
the  children,  whose  apartments  were  well  supplied  with 
crucifixes  and  pictures  of  the  Virgin.  The  Sisters  wore 
their  regular  costume  of  black  serge,  which  looked  very 
uncomfortable  .  .  .  showed  us  the  graves  of  some  of 
their  companions  in  the  adjacent  garden.  They  in- 
formed us  that  they  did  not  employ  native  school- 
masters or  schoolmistresses  to  instruct  the  children  in 
reading,  but  they  learned  the  Chinese  written  characters 
themselves,  and  then  taught  their  scholars.  The 
Sisters  proved  to  us  their  competence  by  reading  some 
passages  in  a  simple  Chinese  style  from  the  Christian 
class-books  used  in  the  school.  Attached  to  the 
establishment  is  a  free  dispensary  for  the  neighbour- 
ing ix>or."^ 

Baron  de  Hiibner  has  already  told  us  of  the 
Orphanage  of  Les  Religieuses  AuxilicUrices  des  Ames 
du  Purgatoire.  "  By  a  special  favour,  we  were  admitted 
into  the  boarding-school,  which  is  generally  closed  to 
men.  It  is  a  large  court  surrounded  with  little  rooms, 
where  grouped  according  to  their  ages  (which  are  from 
five  to  sixteen),  these  young  girls  receive  an  education 
suited  to  their  position  in  the  world.  They  all  looked 
well  and  happy,  and  were  simply  but  nicely  dressed. 
One  set,  their  books  in  their  hands,  were  repeating 

^  fyiigion  in  China^  p.  170. 


390  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

their  lessons  out  loud ;  others  were  doing  needlework ; 
and  some  few,  magnificent  embroidery."  ^ 

Of  Chinese  nuns,  the  Baron  remarks: — "They  are 
very  holy,  and  do  a  great  deal  of  good,  but  they  need 
constant  direction.  ...  As  regards  the  women,  the 
first  duties  of  the  apostolate  are  confided  to  the  native 
Sisters.  They  proceed,  like  the  catechumens,  gather- 
ing together  the  women  and  young  girls  in  some 
friendly  house,  explaining  to  them  the  fundamental 
dogmas  of  our  faith,  and  awakening  in  their  minds  a 
desire  for  conversion.  That  is  the  moment  for  the 
missionary  to  step  in,  to  complete  the  instruction,  and 
confer  baptism."* 

"The  Sisters,"  continues  M.  de  Hubner,  "are 
everywhere  surrounded  by  the  affection  and  veneration 
of  the  people.  At  Ning-po,  for  instance,  natives  of  all 
classes  salute  them  respectfully  whenever  they  appear, 
and  the  poor  boatmen  at  the  great  ferry  refuse  to 
accept  money  from  them.  (This  fact  was  confirmed 
to  me  by  a  Protestant  Englishman  resident  at 
Ning-po.)" » 

In  1885,  Major  KnoUys  tells  us  of  an  Italian 
institution  in  Hankow,  in  which  city  his  "wise  and 
learned  informant,  Dr  Begg,  son  of  the  eminent  Scotch 
Nonconformist  divine"  had  "endeavoured  to  befriend 
in  turn  the  Protestant  and  Dissenting  institutions,  but 
finally  attached  himself  to  the  Roman  Catholic 
Mission."  Sorella  Carolina  conducts  the  Major 
through  wards  which,  though  they  "would,  perhaps, 
have  barely  met  with  approbation  in  England,  in 
China  were  a  marvel  of  comfort  and  cleanliness.  .  •  . 
Loyally  and  freely  did  she  show  me  every  corner, 
answering  in  detail  all  my  questions,  and  even 
encouraging  me  to  seek  confirmation  of  her  replies 
from  other  Sisters.  .  .  .  The  interior  arrangements  of 
the   convent   were    of    that    severely   simple    nature 

>  Ramble  round  the  IVorldy  vol  ii.,  p.  196. 
«  IHd.,  pp.  424-5-  '  ^^^^  P-  439- 


EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS  391 

characteristic  of  similar  religfious  seminaries;  the 
Sisters  had  allowed  for  themselves  few  comforts  and 
comparatively  little  extra  cubic  space,  notwithstanding 
that  the  plea  of  extreme  heat  is  elsewhere  universally 
accepted.  Then  I  was  conducted  into  room  after  room 
full  of  Chinese  children,  and  it  was  explained  to  me 
that  one  of  the  functions  of  the  place  is  a  foundling 
hospital  ...  I  inspect  room  after  room  full  of  children, 
busily,  eagerly,  and — putting  aside  the  feet  abomina- 
tion— happily  employed  in  all  the  stages  of  weaving, 
spinning,  and  needlework,  from  the  simple  operation 
of  passing  the  threads  from  right  to  left  to  the  climax 
of  silk  embroidery,  which  even  a  clumsy  man  devoid 
of  taste  can  perceive  to  be  of  extraordinary  skill  and 
beauty.  Then  the  little  creatures  are  so  proud  of  their 
work,  so  eager  that  I  should  examine  and  scrutinise  the 
labours  of  each  separately.  The  instructors,  about 
seventeen  in  number,  and  all  Italian  Sisters,  have 
furnished  another  instance  of  religious  zeal  surmount- 
ing mountainous  difficulties.  They  are  fully  purposed 
to  devote  the  whole  of  their  young  lives  to  the  most 
practical  and  least  alluring  forms  of  God's  service,  so  they 
do  not  carry  out  the  undertaking  by  halves — they  have 
actually  learned  to  speak  Chinese.  ..."  Now,  Madre 
Superiore,  and  Sorella  Carolina,  I  admit  you  have  given 
me  the  fullest  latitude  to  investigate  every  detail  of  your 
foundling  establishment.  Will  you  explain  to  me  the 
outline  of  your  system?  In  more  definite  terms,  in 
seeking  to  spread  Christianity,  how  and  where  do  you 
start  with  your  task,  and  what  is  your  subsequent 
guiding  principle  ? '  Reply : — *  How :  by  taking  in  hand 
the  pliable  twig,  i.e.,  childhood,  and  ignoring  the 
gnarled,  hardened,  obstinate  old  tree.  Where:  in  the 
very  thick  of  this  city,  the  most  populous  district  in 
China,  of  which  these  numerous  twigs  are  part  and 
parcel,  and  whose  leaven  must,  in  time,  leaven  the 
whole  lump.  On  what  principle:  so  to  train  these 
children,  so   to  free   them    from   their   countrymen's 


392  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

abominations,  so  to  render  them  exemplifications, 
moral  and  physical,  of  the  blessings  of  Christianity, 
that  in  grown-up  age  they  may  unconsciously  become 
apostles,  who  will  turn  the  folly  of  vice  and  superstition 
to  the  wisdom  of  our  Saviour's  religion.'  *Amen. 
Thank  you.    God  speed  you  in  your  efforts.'"^ 

"  During  the  Tai-Ping  rebellion  in  China  some  years 
back,"  says  Mr  Lynch,  "the  Roman  Catholic  nuns 
suffered  dreadfully  at  the  hands  of  the  Chinese,  in 
consequence  of  which  all  Catholic  missions  under  the 
charge  of  nuns  were  fortified,  to  prevent,  if  possible, 
a  repetition  of  the  outrages  previously  perpetrated. 
This  soldier-like  method  of  protecting  the  missions 
caused  the  missionaries  of  other  denominations  to 
observe  sarcastically  that  the  Catholics  were  wont  to 
partly  fortify  houses  from  which  to  preach  the  GospeL 
Nevertheless,  when  trouble  came,  all  those  Protestants 
who  could,  were  glad  to  take  advantage  of  the  protection 
thus  offered  to  them  by  the  Catholics.  Moreover,  in 
many  instances,  the  Catholic  Fathers  sent  word  to  all 
missionaries  irrespective  of  denominations,  to  come  to 
them  for  shelter  if  in  danger  of  molestation  from  the 
Chinese.  ...  At  Jung-Ting-Foo  ...  the  Roman 
Catholic  chapel  possessed  a  small  tower,  and  the 
Chinese  believed  that  in  this  tower  guns  were  mounted 
(which  was  not  true)  .  .  .  thus  they  deemed  it  best  to 
leave  these  premises  severely  alone.  This  mission 
extended  its  protection  not  only  to  many  Protestant 
missionaries,  but  also  to  several  railway  engineers, 
etc."« 

The  wisdom  of  thus  protecting  nuns — who,  in  the 
Catholic  Church,  still  belong  to  the  weaker  sex — is 
amply  justified  by  events.  Among  the  missionaries 
massacred  at  Pao-Ting-Foo,  in  1900,  were  "two  un- 
fortunate  American   ladies,    Miss   G and    Miss 

^  English  Life  in  China^  1885,  Major  Henry  Knollys,  R.A.,  pp.  164- 
178. 

'  The  War  of  the  Civilisatians^  1901,  George  Lynch,  pp.  199-200. 


EDUCATION  AND  SCIENCE— NUNS  393 

M .     These  ladies  were  taken  from  their  houses, 

stripped  of  their  clothing,  and  carried,  suspended  by 
the  hair  and  feet,  from  bamboos  borne  on  the  shoulders 
of  coolies  to  the  city  gates.     On  their  arrival,  Miss 

G was  found  to  be  dead ;  but  poor  Miss  M , 

having^  a  stronger  constitution,  lived  to  be  made  to 
march  naked  through  the  streets  of  the  city,  followed 
by  a  jeering  and  insulting  mob,  and  afterwards  taken 
outside  the  gates,  her  breasts  cut  off,  and  then  her 
head."^ 

We  close  with  the  following  comment  by  Lord 
Granville  on  Article  2  of  the  Missionary  circular  of 
1 87 1 — **That  women  ought  no  longer  to  enter  the 
churche3i  nor  should  Sisters  of  Charity  live  in  China 
to  teach  religion  ...  as  the  Chinese  Government  are 
most  probably  aware,  that  there  are  no  Sisters  of 
Charity  attached  to  British  missionary  societies,  but 
H.M.  Government  cannot  countenance  any  regulation 
which  would  cast  a  slur  upon  a  Sisterhood,  whose 
blameless  lives  and  noble  acts  of  devotion  in  the  cause 
of  humanity  are  known  throughout  the  world."  * 

*  War  of  the  CivUisationSy  p.  205. 

»  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1872,  p.  19. 


CHAPTER  VII 

VARIOUS  MATTERS — CONCLUSION 

Among  other  matters  of  complaint  in  the  Missionary 
circular  of  1871  were  those  connected  with  official 
rank.  This,  the  Catholic  missionaries  were  said  to 
have  assumed,  with  all  its  insignia  and  privilegres. 
*'The  instances  given  of  the  offences  complained  of 
are  not  numerous,"  wrote  the  British  Minister  to  W&i 
Siang,  "and  the  venue  is  laid  in  the  remote  provinces 
of  Kwei-chow  and  Sze-chuen."  ^ 

This  complaint  was  entirely  waived  by  the  grant 
of  official  rank  by  the  Chinese  Government  itself. 
On  isth  March  1899,  the  Tsung4i  Yamin  issued  a 
Memorandum  by  which  "  Bishops  rank  with  Governors- 
General  and  Governors.  They  may  ask  for  interviews 
with  these  officers.  If  a  Bishop  vacates  his  post  on 
account  of  sickness,  or  returns  to  his  country,  the 
priest  who  acts  for  him  can  also  ask  for  interviews 
with  a  Governor-General  and  Governor.  Pro-vicaires 
and  head-priests  can  ask  for  interviews  with  Treasurers, 
Judges,  and  Tao-tais.  Other  priests  can  ask  for  inter- 
views with  Prefects  and  Magistrates.  The  Chinese 
officials  of  all  ranks  will  return  the  courtesies  in 
accordance  with  the  rank  of  the  priest.  ...  All  those 
priests  who  ask  for  interviews  must  be  Westerns,  and 
those  specially  deputed  to  transact  such  business  must 
be  Westerns ;  but  in  cases  in  which  the  Western  priest 
cannot  speak  Chinese,  a  Chinese  priest  may  interpret."^ 

1  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1872,  p.  15. 
'  Ibid,  (i),  1900^  p.  142. 


VARIOUS  MATTERS— CONCLUSION  395 

This  was  intended  by  the  Chinese  Government,  Mr 
Michie  remarks,  to  help  settlement  on  the  spot  of 
difficulties,  thus  avoiding  appeals  to  the  Central 
Government.  It  has  not  done  this,  because  an 
important  section  of  missionaries  decline  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  concession,  which  implies  a  hierarchy 
which  only  Catholic  missions  possess.^  **The  missions 
of  the  Anglican  Communion  and  other  Protestant 
Churches  have  unanimously  refused  to  ask  for  any 
similar  privileges,"  says  Dr  Hawks- Pott* 

"The  Imperial  Rescript  of  isth  March  1899, 
whereby  China  granted  official  rank  to  the  Roman 
Catholic  Hierarchy  .  .  .  has  been  cancelled.  The 
rescript  at  the  time  was  not  received  with  entire  favour ; 
it  has  since  been  condemned  by  devout  Roman 
Catholics,  has  frequently  been  abused,  and  has  led  to 
frequent  difficulties,  for  it  gave  higher  rank  to  mission- 
aries than  to  the  consular  representatives  of  the 
countries  whose  subjects  they  were,  or  by  whom  they 
were  protected."' 

Some  interest  attaches  to  the  P'ei-t'ang,  as  the 
Catholic  Cathedral  in  Peking  is  called,  both  on  account 
of  its  removal  to  its  present  site,  and  of  its  siege  by  the 
Boxers. 

The  original  site  was  granted  to  the  Catholic 
missionaries  by  the  Emperor  Kang-Hsi  (1661-1721) 
in  recognition  of  their  scientific  services.  It  was  "well 
within  the  Imperial  City."*  There  seem  to  have  been 
negotiations  for  its  removal  in  1874  which  came  to 
nothing.*  Those  of  1885  were  more  successful;  and 
the  following  account  of  them  was  given  to  Mr  Savage- 
Landor  by  the  late  Mgr.   Favier,  Vicar-Apostolic  of 

*  The  Englishman  in  China^  1900^  Alexander  Michie,  vol.  ii., 
p.  248. 

'  The  Outbreak  in  China^  1900,  Rev.  F.  L.  Hawks-Pott,  D.D., 
p.  108. 

5  The  Times,  15th  April  1908. 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (i),  1874,  p.  2. 

*  The  Englishman  in  China^  vol.  ii.y  p.  342. 


396  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

Peking,    who    received    high   official    rank    from    the 
Chinese  Government  for  his  services  in  the  matter : — 

In  1885  the  question  of  the  P'ei-t'angr  was  again 
brought  forward.  The  young  Emperor  had  come  of  ag^e. 
He  was  about  to  be  married,  and  to  assume  the  reins  of 
his  Empire.  The  Empress- Dowager  was,  according  to 
custom,  expected  to  leave  the  palace  to  make  room  for 
the  newfEmpress.  This  she  seemed  willing  to  do,  were 
a  suitable  abode  provided  for  her  in  the  picturesque 
Nan-hae  adjoining  the  palace.  This  meant  that  the 
fine  buildings,  the  Lotus  Ponds,  and  lovely  white  Marble 
Bridge  would  become  her  private  property,  and  it  was 
apparent  that  the  P'ei-t'ang  with  the  houses  around  it, 
wherein  lived  thousands  of  Chinese,  were  also  needed 
for  Imperial  houses  and  grounds.  By  paying  a  due 
compensation,  some  £6  for  each  room,  the  houses  were 
seized  and  demolished,  the  Marble  Bridge  was  closed 
to  the  public,  and  fine  palaces  built  on  the  edge  of  the 
Lotus  Pond.  In  the  case  of  the  Fei-t'ang,  the  Chinese 
seemed  ready  to  deal  honourably  and  even  handsomely. 
They  recognised  that  the  land  was  a  gift  from  the 
Emperor  Kang-si  to  the  Catholics,  who  had  gone  to 
much  expense  to  put  up  the  various  buildings,  and, 
moreover,  that  were  they  to  move  elsewhere,  it  would 
appear  that  they  had  been  turned  out  of  the  Imperial 
City  by  order  of  the  Emperor.  The  Christians,  who 
had  always  been  {sic)  on  friendly  terms  with  the  Empire, 
might  thus  be  brought  into  disrepute  in  the  eyes  of  the 
populace  The  Chinese  Government  instructed  Li 
Hung-chang  to  carry  out  the  transfer  **in  a  way  that 
seemed  profitable  to  the  Catholics." 

The  Chinese  offered  to  give  in  exchange  for  the 
P'ei-t  ang  the  Si-Che-ku,  a  piece  of  land  larger  than  the 
P'ei-t'ang,  and  also  within  the  walls  of  the  Imperial 
City.  They  promised  to  pay  for  the  reconstruction  of 
every  necessary  building,  and  proposed  to  publish  in 
the  Peking^  Gazette  an  edict  to  inform  every  person  in 
China  that  the  transaction  was  2^  mere  friendly  ex- 


In  fact,  the  fa9ade  of  the  new  church  was  decorated 
with  the  characters  Torche-kien,  i,e.,  built  by  order  of 
the  Emperor.  Two  Imperial  yellow  pavilions  would  be 
erected  in  front  of  the  new  cathedral,  as  well  as  tablets 
of  white  marble  to  perpetuate  the  memory  of  the 
friendly  exchange.  M.  Constans,  the  French  Minister, 
completed  the  necessary  negotiations,  with  the  approval 
of  the  Pope,  and  all  parties  interested.  No  part  of  the 
church  was  to  reach  a  greater  height  than  fifty  feet,  nor 
was  the  bell-tower  to  be  higher  than  the  church.  The 
Chinese  behaved  gracefully  in  the  transaction ;  and,  to 
the  astonishment  of  everybody,  even  removed  an 
ancient  pagoda,  which  would  have  somewhat  obscured 
the  view  of  the  new  cathedral.  The  foundations  were 
laid  30th  May  1887,  the  old  P'ei-t'ang  was  given  over 
to  the  Tsung'li  Yamin  in  December,  the  new  one  was 
finished  and  consecrated  8th  December  1888.^ 

Twelve  years  later,  Mgr.  Favier  had  the  unusual 
experience — if  anything  can  be  described  as  unusual  in 
China — for  a  Christian  bishop,  of  having  to  turn  the 
P'ei-tang  into  a  fortress,  and  stand  a  siege.  **The 
greater  part  of  those  besieged  [3400]  consisted  of 
children  from  the  male  and  female  orphanages.  A 
body  of  volunteers  was  formed  by  the  Fathers  from  all 
the  adult  converts  who  were  capable  of  bearing  arms," 
says  Mr  Lynch.  "They  provided  spears  for  them, 
made  by  fastening  knives  to  the  end  of  long  poles ;  and 
in  addition  to  these  weapons,  they  were  possessed  of 
forty  marine  rifles,  and  seven  or  eight  muskets.  .  .  . 
Much  has  been  written  about  the  gallant  defence  of  the 
Legations,  as  public  attention  was  naturally  focussed 
on  them,  but  the  siege  of  the  Legations  was  almost 
child's  play  compared  with  the  siege  of  the  garrison  at 
the  P  ei-t  ang.  The  regular  troops  defending  the  mission 
consisted  only  of  thirty  French  and  twelve  Italians  who, 

^  China  and  the  Allies^  1901,  A.  Henry  Savage-Landor,  vol.  iL, 
pp.  215^7. 


398  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

at  the  last  moment,  had  been  spared  from  the  Legation 
guards."^  "The  houses  in  the  compound  were  mined. 
Fire-balls  were  thrown  on  the  roofs.  In  one  day,  700 
cannon-balls,  each  weigrhingf  25  lbs.,  were  hurled 
into  the  compound.  In  one  mine  twenty-five  of  the 
defenders  were  killed,  and  twenty-eight  wounded."* 
Rev.  Lord  William  Cecil  visited  the  place  in  1907,  and 
remarked: — "Three  times  did  the  Chinese  mine  their 
fortifications.  Once  the  mine  was  well  placed,  and  it 
shattered  their  weak  wall. of  defence,  and  wrecked  the 
orphanage,  killing  forty  babies.  The  awful  crater  that 
the  explosion  made  can  still  be  seen.  By  what  seemed  to 
the  small  band  of  defenders  to  be  almost  a  miracle,  the 
Chinese  never  dared  enter  through  the  breach,  though 
their  soldiers  could  be  reckoned  by  the  ten  thousand, 
and  there  were  only  forty-two  rifles  to  man  the 
shattered  wall  of  defence,  and  these  rifles  were  no  longer 
all  held  by  Europeans."' 

"The  fa9ade  of  the  cathedral,  when  we  saw  it,"  sajrs 
*Griselda,'  "was  still  riddled  by  shot.  Inside  the 
building,  however,  a  Chinese  priest  was  ofiiciating,  and 
Chinese  converts  were  praying  as  placidly  as  though 
Christians  had  never  been  persecuted  in  China.  .  .  . 
3000  native  converts  had  been  included  among  the 
besieged  *  Whatever  could  they  have  fed  on  ?  that  is 
what  puzzles  me.'  We  had  left  the  cathedral,  and  passed 
into  the  grounds  through  the  mission  buildings.    There 

A s  problem  was  solved  with  pathetic  realism,  for  all 

the  trees  were  stripped  of  their  bark,  and  had  the  most 
piteous  skinned  appearance  that  was  eloquent  in  explain- 
ing the  wretched  diet  of  the  miserable  refugees."  *  And 
so,  "starvation  loomed  close,  carrion  dogs  feeding  on 
dead  Boxers  were  eagerly  chased,  killed,  and  eaten,  and 

1  TAe  War  of  the  Civilisations^  1901,  George  Lynch,  p.  94. 

^  China  and  Her  People^  1906,  Hon.  Charles  Denby,  LL.D.,  voL  i^ 
pp.  231-2. 

'  ••  Missions  in  China,''  National  Review^  December  1907,  p.  572. 

^  The  Glotular  Jottings  of  Griselda^  1907,  £.  Douglas  Hume,  pp. 
391-2. 


considered  palatable  food."^ 

It  is  noteworthy  that,  at  the  same  moment  as  some 
of  the  representatives  of  the  highly  civilised  nations  of 
Europe  were — as  we  have  already  been  told — proposing 
to  turn  the  native  Christians  out  of  the  British  Legation 
compound,  to  take  their  chance  among  the  Boxers,  on 
account  of  the  difficulty  of  feeding  them,  the  Catholic 
Chinese  should  have  been  invited  to  do  the  same  to  the 
Europeans  in  the  P'ei-t*ang,  and  refused  to  do  so. 
" '  You  Christians  shut  up  in  the  P'ei-t'ang,'  ran  one  of 
the  numerous  messages,  arrow-sent  into  the  middle  of 
this  shot-riddled,  mine-shattered,  half-starved  com- 
munity, 'reduced  to  dire  misery,  eating  the  leaves  of 
trees,  why  do  you  so  obstinately  resist  when  you  can  do 
nothing?  We  have  cannon  and  mines,  and  can  blow 
you  all  up  in  a  short  time.  You  are  deceived  by  the  devils 
of  Europe ;  return  to  the  ancient  religion  of  the  Fu^ 
hand  over  Mgr.  Favier  and  the  rest,  and  your  lives  will 
be  saved,  and  we  will  supply  you  with  food.  If  you  do 
not  do  this,  your  women  and  children  will  be  cut  to 
pieces.'  ...  Of  all  the  Christian  converts  within  the 
walls  of  the  P'ei-t'ang,"  continues  Mr  Lynch,  "not  one 
evinced  the  slightest  disposition  to  respond  to  the 
Boxers'  reiterated  requests  to  surrender.  .  .  .  The 
rations  in  the  garrison  were  almost  completely  exhausted 
on  the  day  of  the  relief.  For  a  week  previously  they 
had  been  reduced  to  two  ounces  of  rice  per  head  per 
diem.  And  only  two  days'  rations  at  this  meagre  rate 
remained.  I  was  shown  round  the  mission  soon  after 
its  relief,  by  one  of  the  Sisters.  The  Mother  Superior, 
seventy-eight  years  of  age,  who  had  spent  forty  years  of 
her  life  in  China,  lay  dying — a  daughter  of  Count  Jaurias, 
of  Chateau  Jaurias,  near  Bordeaux.  She  had  belonged 
to  the  Order  of  Sisters  of  Charity  since  her  eighteenth 
year.  ...  In  the  midst  of  these  ruins,  these  good 
women,  mostly  of  gentle  birth,  were  striving  to  recom- 

^  War  cf  the  CivilisaHonSy  p.  97. 


400         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

mence  their  labours,  and  nurse,  and  teach,  and  feed  the 
children  that  remained.  But,  conversing  with  them, 
one  perceived  underlying  their  heroic  resisrnation,  a 
strain  of  very  human  despondency  and  disappointment. 
Their  talk  here  was  not  of  compensation.  It  was 
merely  of  how  they  could  get  their  ruined  mission- 
house  fit  for  work  asfain — the  work  for  which  they 
had  left  father  and  mother  and  friends  in  far-off 
France."^ 

"It  is  almost  a  pity,"  the  Bishop  sighed,  ''that  we 
were  not  all  massacred  ;  we  should  have  died  martyrs ; 
and  it  would  have  spared  us  the  pain  of  seeing  our  work 
of  nearly  half  a  century  destroyed.  Look  at  our  poor, 
tumbling-down  church,  our  ruined  buildings  1  It  is 
heart-rending,  but  we  have  energy,  and  we  will  b^n 
again."* 

Lord  William  Cecil  asked  Mgr.  Jarlin,  who  had 
succeeded  Mgr.  Favier,  at  the  death  of  the  latter,  if  he 
thought  that  such  sufferings  as  they  had  undergone  in 
the  P'ei-t'ang  had  not  a  deterrent  effect  on  the  growth 
of  the  Church.  He  answered  that  "  I  was  mistaken  if 
I  thought  those  inside  the  P'ei-t  ang  the  greatest 
sufferers.  1600  were  martyred  in  his  Vicariate  alone, 
many  with  indescribable  tortures.  He  allowed  he  had 
been  anxious  lest  he  should  find  converts  afraid  to 
profess  their  faith  after  such  an  ordeal,  but  he  was 
thankful  to  say  the  old  adage  had  come  most  strictly 
true :  *  the  blood  of  martyrs  had  been  the  seed  of  the 
Church.' "» 

"  As  I  shall  not  return  to  the  subject  again,"  wrote 
the  late  Mrs  Bishop,  "  I  will  briefly  refer  to  four  of  the 
causes,  in  my  opinion,  of  their  [the  Roman  Catholic 
missions]  undoubtedly  growing  unpopularity  in  Sze 
Chuan  and  elsewhere,  in  spite  of  the  assistance  given  to 
Christian  litigants  previously  referred  to. 

*  War  of  the  CivilisaHans^  pp.  98-101. 
^  China  cmd  the  Allies^  vol.  ii.,  p.  227. 
'  National  Review  (December  1907),  pp.  572-3. 


to  the  losses  sustained,  demanded  and  obtained  by  M. 
Gerard,  then  French  Minister  at  Peking,  for  damage 
done  to  mission  property  during  the  riots  in  Sze  Chuan 
in  1895."^  On  this  subject  we  may  be  permitted  to 
remark  that  there  are  few  things  that  give  rise  to  so 
much  controversy  as  **  damages,"  the  amount  of  which, 
naturally,  appears  in  quite  a  different  light  to  the  parties 
concerned;  besides  which,  "French  mission  claims 
generally  comprise  compensation  to  native  Christians,"* 
who,  as  we  have  seen,  are  the  first  to  suffer,  and  are  not 
likely  to  be  compensated  otherwise. 

II.  "The  claim  of  the  Roman  hierarchy  (now  [1899] 
conceded)  to  be  placed  on  a  level  in  position  with  the 
higher  mandarins  as  to  the  number  of  their  chair-bearers, 
etc.,  and  the  amount  of  personal  reverence  exacted  by 
the  clergy  from  a  people  essentially  democratic. 

III.  "  The  non-admission  of  the  heathen  into  Roman 
churches  during  the  celebration  of  Mass  and  other 
services,  while  the  secrecy  which  attends  the  administra- 
tion of  the  last  rites  of  the  Church  is  undoubtedly 
obnoxious  to  the  lower  orders  among  the  Chinese,  who 
have  no  conceptions  of  privacy. 

IV."  The  opposite  methods  pursued  by  Protestants  of 
all  denominations,  since  their  settlement  in  the  far  West, 
a  few  years  ago,  are  doubtless  working  against  the 
practices  of  the  Roman  missionaries."* 

Concerning  the  non-admission  of  heathen  into  the 
^'  Roman  churches: — "As  to  the  question  of  decorum. 
Your  Excellency  is  evidently  not  aware,  in  the  first 
^  ^],  place,  that  during  service,  Christian  chapels,  Protestant 
^^l  and  Romish  alike,  are  open  to  all,  non-Christians  as 
^'        well  as  Christians,  who  will  conduct  themselves  so  as  not 

,pC'  "  TAe  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond^  1899,  Mrs  J.  F.  Bishop,  F.R.G.S., 

p.  lOI. 

'  Sir  E.  Satow  to  the  Marquis  of  Lansdowne^  23rd  November  1901, 
China  (6),  1901,  p.  88. 

3  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond^  pp.  ioi-2, 

2  C 


# 


1  '^\ 


402  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

to  interrupt  the  service,  that  there  are  no  doing[s  in 
either  that  any  outsider  is  not  free  to  observe ;  and  that 
in  the  Romish  places  of  worship  in  China,  the  sexes, 
out  of  deference  to  Chinese  feeling  on  the  subject,  are 
generally,  if  not  always  separate.  I  have  seen  this  with 
my  own  eyes  at  Shanghai,  and  I  believe  that  it  is  the 
rule  in  their  chapels  elsewhere."^ 

Naturally— considering  what  the  Mass  is — "opposite 
methods"  of  the  following  description  could  not  be 
tolerated : — At  Mien-chow,  Sze  Chuan,  '*  there  were  two 
[non-Catholic]  services  in  the  guest-hall  on  Sunday, 

conducted  by  Mr ,  the  Superintendent  of  the  Mission, 

and  several  classes  for  women  also,  but  all  in  a  distract- 
ing babel — men  playing  cards  outside  the  throng,  men 
and  women  sitting  for  a  few  minutes,  some  laugrhing 
scornfully,  others  talking  in  loud  tones,  some  lighting 
their  pipes,  and  a  very  few  really  interested"* 

Nor  perhaps  this  sort  of  thing :— At  Han-Tchong- 
Fou :  '*  A  feast  was  being  celebrated  in  the  [Buddhist] 
temple  that  day,  and  a  religious  service  was  taking 
place  .  .  .  the  crowd  paid  no  heed  to  the  priests 
worshipping  before  the  idols,  and  singing  to  the 
accompaniment  of  most  hideous  music.  Those 
individuals  immediately  surrounding  me  discussed  my 
garments,  my  boots,  and  my  pencils,  going  into 
ecstasies  of  praise;  others  pushed  and  scrambled  for 
places,  while  some  even  came  to  blows ;  the  latter  were 
turned  out,  principally  from  deference  to  me.  The 
policemen,  in  seeking  to  restore  quiet,  brandished  their 
clubs,  and  banged  them  against  the  lanterns  and  other 
sacred  objects.  Such  was  Chinese  piety  1  Later  on, 
they  lit  their  pipes,  on  which  I  ventured  to  take  out  a 
cigarette.  One  of  the  priests  took  a  candle  from  the 
altar  to  give  me  a  light,  and  after  remarking  what 
excellent  aromatic  tobacco  it  was,  proceeded  with  the 
service.    Two   well-dressed   Chinese,   not   priests    but 

»  Mr  Wade  to  Whi  Siang,  China  (i),  1872,  p.  15. 
^  The  Yangtze  Valley  and  Beyond^  p.  323. 


be  brought  and  tea  given  to  me."  ^ 

The  statement  concerning  non-admission  of  heathen 
to  Catholic  churches  during  Mass,  etc.,  seemed,  more- 
over, to  the  present  writer  so  extraordinary — tending, 
as  it  would,  if  correct,  to  hinder  the  object  for  which 
alone  missionaries  go  to  China — that  he  consulted  a 
Catholic  resident  of  many  years  standing  in  Peking. 
He  was  assured  that  any  well-conducted  Chinese  would 
be  permitted  to  attend  as  a  matter  of  course,  and  that 
such  was  the  case  elsewhere.  This  same  resident  was 
once  asked  by  a  high  Chinese  official  why  non- 
Christians  were  refused  admission.  The  answer  was 
that  it  was  not  so,  in  proof  whereof,  he  was  invited  to 
attend  on  the  morrow,  with  the  assurance  that  an 
honourable  place  would  be  reserved  for  him.  This  last 
was  done,  but  the  Chinese  gentleman  came  not. 

In  reference  to  the  matter  of  "secrecy,"  the  same 
seems  to  be  urged  by  Lord  Curzon,  who  mentions  as  a 
difficulty,  "the  mystery  of  the  Feast  of  the  Holy 
Sacrament";  and  "the  privacy  of  the  Confessional," 
wherein  "  the  foul-minded  Chinese  critic  "  only  sees  "  a 
hypocritical  mask  for  indecency  and  wrong-doing."* 

What  are  the  missionaries  of  the  Catholic  Church 
expected  to  teach  in  China,  or  anjrwhere  else,  except 
Catholic  doctrine?  Are  they  to  water-down  the 
Articles  of  Faith,  merely  because  those  to  whom  they 
have  been  sent  do  not  approve?  Is  it*permitted  to 
affirm  the  Real  Presence  in  Europe,  and  deny  it  in  Asia  ? 
Can  the  Church  uphold  the  Sacrament  of  Penance — 
with  its  consequent  practice  of  confession — in  the  West, 
and  abolish  it  in  the  East  ?  The  truth  seems  to  be,  that 
She  can  please  no  one  of  the  conflicting  parties  outside 
Her  fold.  She  teaches  definite  doctrine  and  holds  to  it ; 
She     is     "intolerant":    She    concedes    matters    not 

»  Russian  Travellers  in  Mongolia  and  Chinay  1884,  P.  Piassetsky,  voL 
ii.,  p.  35. 

>  Problems  of  the  Far  East^  1894,  Hon.  G.  N.  Curzon,  M.P.,  p.  328. 


404  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

affecting  Faith  or  Morals;  and  She  is  charged  with 
"expediency." 

The  Chinese  superstition  concerning  the  Sacrament 
of  Extreme  Unction  is  very  old,  and  interrogatories 
addressed  to  Catholic  priests  by  the  tribunals  have 
usually  included  it. 

The  Hunan  Publications  tell  us  that  when  "  native 
Christians  die  they  will  not  allow  relatives  to  go  near, 
for  they  scoop  out  the  eyes  to  sell  for  mixing  with  lead, 
out  of  which  mixture  they  extract  8  per  cent  of  silver."  * 
A  Chinese  thus  explained  the  process  of  Extreme 
Unction  to  Dr  Wells  Williams : — *'  It  is  a  custom  with 
priests  who  teach  this  religion,  when  a  man  is  about  to 
die,  to  take  a  handful  of  cotton,  having  concealed 
within  it  a  sharp  needle,  and  then,  while  rubbing  the 
individuals  eyes  with  the  cotton,  to  introduce  the 
needle  into  the  eye,  and  puncture  the  pupil  with  it; 
the  humours  of  the  pupil  saturate  the  cotton,  and  are 
afterwards  sold  as  medicine."' 

As  regards  the  privacy  of  the  administration  of  the 
last  rites  of  the  Church,  a  death-bed  is  hardly  the 
occasion  where  the  person  principally  concerned  might 
be  supposed  to  be  anxious  to  receive  visitors.  As  if  to 
emphasise  this  point,  a  member  of  the  China  Inland 
Mission  has  given  us  an  account  of  a  Chinese  death- 
bed at  which  she  assisted: — **She  is  quietly  passing 
away  .  .  •  fifteen  or  twenty  people  are  gathered  in  the 
little  cottage,  talking  loudly  all  the  time.  .  .  .  They 
seem  to  think  very  lightly  of  death,  laughing  quite 
openly  at  every  little  thing,  and  have  only  just  stopped, 
at  our  request,  their  loud  talk  about  the  garments  she 
should  wear  in  the  coffin.  More  and  more  people  come 
in,  and  now  they  begin  to  smoke,  men  and  women 
alike.  .  .  .  Together  we  sing  softly  the  Chinese  version 

1  The  Hunan  Tracts  of  China^  1892,  ''  Shocked  Friend  of  China,'' 

p.  4« 

s  The  MiddU  Kingdom  (Kevised  EditionX  1883,  S.  Wells  Williams, 
LL.D.,  vol  iL,  p.  3S6. 


Him  for  His  gfrace.'"  Later: — " Chang-nai-nai  is 
sinking  rapidly  now.  We  have  made  her  as  comfort- 
able as  we  can,  and  when  she  recognises  us,  and  is  able 
to  smile  or  speak,  she  seems  very  grateful.  I  have 
been  reading  here,  in  these  strange  surroundings, 
I  Cor.  XV.,  and  realising  with  wonder  and  unspeakable 
gratitude  that  it  is  true."  The  visitors,  meanwhile, 
discuss  the  funeral,  and  suggest  that  the  son  of  the 
departing,  being  poor,  will  have  to  take  down  his  house, 
and  build  a  coffin  with  the  wooden  beam  of  the  roof.^ 

Much  exception  is  often  taken  to  the  baptism  of 
children  in  articulo  mortis.  Dr  Wells  Williams  thus 
delivers  himself  on  the  matter : — 

"It  may,  however,  be  a  question,  even  with  a 
candid  Romanist  who  believes  that  unbaptised  infants 
perish  eternally,  whether  baptism  performed  by  women 
and  unconsecrated  laymen  is  valid ;  and  still  more  so 
whether  it  is  ritual  when  done  by  stealth  and  under 
false  pretences."* 

The  "candid  Romanist"  had  much  better  learn  his 
penny  Catechism  properly,  and  then  he  will  not  raise 
questions  of  this  kind.  He  will  then  find  that  Christ 
Himself  said,  "unless  a  man  be  born  again  of  water 
and  the  Holy  Ghost  he  cannot  enter  into  the  Kingdom 
of  God." » 

To  avoid  any  misunderstanding  by  non-Catholics, 
we  may  briefly  say  that  the  Catholic  Church  does  not 
teach  that  unbaptised  children  "perish"  in  the  sense 
implied  by  Dr  Wells  Williams,  i.e.^  go  to  the  place  of 
punishment  called  Hell,  or  even  to  the  place  of 
detention  and  cleansing  known  as  Purgatory.  But 
they  will  be  relegated  to  a  region  where,  although  they 
will  not  be  subjected  to  pains  of  sense  like  the  Lost,  and 

»  In  the  Far  East^  1889,  Letters  of  Geraldine  Guinness  of  the  C.I.M., 
p.  iia 

«  The  Middle  Kingdom  (Revised  Edition),  1883,  S.  Wells  WiUiams, 
LL.D.,  vol.  ii.,  p.  311.  '  John  iii.  5. 


406  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

will  enjoy  a  state  of  natural  happiness,  they  will  be 
deprived  of  the  vision  of  God,  which  constitutes  the 
essential  happiness  of  the  Blessed — "cannot  enter  into 
the  Kingdom  of  God,"  in  fact. 

As  to  the  "stealth  and  false  pretences" — ^the 
consent  of  an  infant,  of  course,  being  out  of  the 
question — it  is  naturally  better  to  baptise  a  child  in 
articulo  mortis^  with  approval  of  its  parents,  if  such 
can  be  had ;  but  in  the  face  of  the  plain  directions  of 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Catholic  Church  does  not  allow  that 
the  prejudice  or  ignorance  of  a  parent  have  any  claim 
to  consideration  when  the  eternal  happiness  of  the  soul 
of  his  dying  child  is  at  stake. 

"No  attention,"  continues  Dr  Wells  Williams, 
"seems  to  be  given  to  the  child  in  ordinary  cases,  if 
it  happens  to  live  after  this  surreptitious  baptism."* 
How  this  is  known  is  not  stated;  but  as  the  Doctor 
told  us  on  the  preceding  page  of  the  introduction  of  the 
Sisters  of  Charity,  the  many  thousands  of  children 
under  their  charge,  and  of  "the  widespread  and  lasting 
influence  "  of  the  schools ;  ^  it  may  be  hoped  that — ^with 
the  consent  of  their  parents,  who  have  the  right,  in  this 
case,  to  refuse  it — some,  at  least,  of  these  children  find 
their  way  to  these  schools. 

Furthermore: — "The  degree  of  instruction  given 
to  the  converts  is  trifling,  partly  owing  to  the  great 
extent  of  a  single  diocese,  and  partly  to  imperfect  know- 
ledge of  the  language  on  the  part  of  the  missionaries. 
The  vexations  constantly  experienced  urge  them  to  be 
cautious ;  and  truly  if  a  missionary  believes  that 
baptism,  confirmation,  confession,  and  absolution  are 
all  the  evidences  of  faith  that  are  required  in  a  convert 
to  entitle  him  to  salvation,  it  cannot  be  supposed  that 
he  will  deem  it  necessary  to  give  them  long-continued 
instruction."* 

It  might  strike  an  unprejudiced  observer  that,  if  a 

1  The  Middle  Kingdom^  vol.  ii.,  p.  311* 
«  Ibid^  IK  31a  '  IHd.^  pp.  31 1-2. 


VARIOUS  MATTERS— CONCLUSION  i 

convert  does — ^and  does  properly — what  is  implied 
reception  of  the  Sacraments  of  Baptism,  Confirmati< 
and    Penance,  he   has   received   no  mean   course 
instruction,  and  given  no  small  evidence  of  faith.     I 
let  us  inquire  what  is  the  effect  of  it  and  the  Sacramei 
mentioned ;  and  Dr  Wells  Williams  himself  shall  1 
us:  ".  .  .  many   of   their   converts   also   exhibit   t 
grreatest  constancy   in  their  profession,  preferring 
suffer  persecution,  torture,  imprisonment,  banishme 
and  death,  rather  than  to  deny  their  faith,  though  ev< 
inducement  of  prevarication  and  mental  reservation  v 
held  out  to  them  by  the  magistrates,  in  order  to  av 
the  necessity  of  proceeding  to  extreme  measures, 
undergoing   the  loss  of  all   things  is  an  evidence 
piety,  many  of  them  have  abundantly  proved  their  t 
to  this  virtue"^    It  is  difficult  to  see  what  more  tl 
could  have  done;  and  many  people  who  could  h« 
made  so  generous  a  tribute  to  heroism  such  as  tl 
would  also  have  contrived  to  see  some  good  in 
Faith  which  inspired  and  strengthened  its  votaries 
accomplish  so  much.     Not  so  Dr  Wells  Williams,  v 
thinks  that,  until  the  Catholic  Church  conforms  to 
ideas  of  what  is  becoming,  "the  mass  of  converts 
Romanism  in  China  can  hardly  be  considered  as  mi 
better  than  baptised  Pagans."* 

We  may  now  record  a  few  passing  impressions 
native  converts  on  casual  travellers. . 

In  1870,  Mr  Williamson,  travelling  in  Shan-si,  *M 
an  interesting  conversation  with  some  native  Roman 
at  the  inn  where  they  visited  us.  It  was  pleasant 
find  one  of  these  men  especially  clear  and  full  in 
answers  to  questions  upon  the  great  Christian  trui 
His  views  of  the  person  and  work  of  the  Saviour  m 
all  that  could  be  desired,  and  we  joyfully  recognisec 
him  the  faith  and  spirit  of  a  true  believer.  Protests 
would  have  little  reason  to  complain  of  Popery,  il 
the   converts  made  by  the  Roman  Church   were 

^  rk€  Middle  Kingdom^  vol.  ii.,  pp.  317-8.  *  IHd 


408  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

trained.    Yet  this  man  alas !  had  never  seen  any  portion 
of  the  Scriptures."^ 

In   1 87 1,  Baron  de  Hiibner — ^a  Catholic — grives  an 
account   of  his  visit  to  the  Christian  setdements  of 
Se-non.    " '  Let  us  go  there,'  I  exclaim.    *  Impossible,' 
answers  one  of  the  guests  of  the  consul.     'Difficult,* 
says  another,  'it  is  a  perfect  nest  of  pirates.     When 
we  gfo  there,  which  is  very  rarely,  we  are  very  numerous 
and    armed   to   the   teeth.      This  winter,    again,    an 
English  gunboat  has  tried  to  purge  those  inner  seas. 
The  only  result  was  the  capture  of  a  junk,  which  had 
been  purposely  wrecked  and  abandoned  by  the  pirates. 
.  .  .  Give  up  the  idea  of  visiting  the  Se-non  district' 
At  these  words  the  P^re  Raimondi  smiled,  and  said  to 
me :  *  I  will  take  you  there,  and  I  will  answer  for  your 
safety.* 

"The  day  before  yesterday,  accordingly,  in  the 
morning,  we  started  for  Se-non,  Father  Raimondi,  a 
Chinese  Father  who  speaks  Latin  fluently,  and  I.  .  .  . 
During  three  days  we  lived  and  travelled  with  an 
apostolic  simplicity  in  that  wild  country,  and  in  the 
midst  of  a  population  of  pirates,  who,  nevertheless, 
begin  to  improve,  inasmuch  as  the  Christians  have  all 
renounced  brigandage.  We  passed  the  first  night  in 
arrived  at  Ting-kok,  the  most  important  point  in  the 
the  Christian  village  of  Si-Kung ;  and  the  next  day  on 
a  little  island  called  San-ting-say,  all  the  inhabitants  of 
which  have  received  baptism.  In  the  evening  we 
Se-non  mission.  The  Fathers  possess  a  comparatively 
spacious  house  there,  of  which  the  salubrity  would  be 
perfect,  without  a  curtain  of  trees  which  prevents  the 
western  breeze  from  bringing  a  little  freshness  to  it. 
The  superstition  of  such  of  the  inhabitants  as  have 
remained  pagan  would  not  allow  of  their  making  gaps 
in  the  wood.  It  would  displease  the  spirits.  The  new 
Christians  already  laugh  at  the  alarms  and  ignorance  of 

^  Journeys  in  North  China^  1870I  Rev.  Alexander  Williamson,  B.A., 
voL  i.,  p.  317. 


.  .  .  The  other  Christian  villages  each  have  a  little 
chapel,  ornamented  or  not  with  a  cross,  according  to 
the  favourable  or  hostile  disposition  of  the  population, 
and  flanked  by  a  miserable  little  room,  which  serves  as 
a  shelter  to  the  priest  during  his  numerous  visits.  .  .  . 
The  Christian  community  of  this  island  is  not  very 
numerous;  but  what  good  faces!  Here,  as  in  all  the 
other  Christian  settlements,  our  arrival  produced  a 
certain  sensation.  People  flocked  around  us  from  all 
quarters.  The  men  went  into  the  missionary's  room ; 
the  women,  many  of  them  mothers  with  babies  slung  on 
their  backs,  passed  in  file  before  the  door  without  crossing 
the  threshold.  All  knelt  and  asked  for  a  blessing.  Now 
I  understand  the  influence  and  moral  ascendency  of  the 
Fathers.  They  live  amongst  their  people, — know,  share, 
and  console  them  in  their  sufferings.  The  Se-non 
district  reckons  above  600,000  inhabitants.  .  .  .  Father 
Borghinoli,  of  Verona,  was  the  first  to  establish  himself 
here  in  1863.  To-day  there  are  above  600  Christians. 
In  this  number  I  do  not  include  children  of  the  Sainte 
Enfance,  that  is,  the  babies  picked  up  in  the  streets,  or 
brought  to  the  orphanages.  Of  late  years  they  reckon 
annually  about  one  hundred  conversions,  which  is  con- 
sidered a  very  good  result ;  only  all  these  converts  belong 
to  the  lower  orders.  Two  European  Fathers  of  the 
Hong-Kong  mission  reside  alternately  in  the  thirteen 
Christian  villages  which  constitute  the  mission  of 
Se-non.  The  tao-tai  of  the  district  resides  at  Nam-tao. 
Without  favouring  the  missionaries,  he  condescends  to 
ignore  their  presence.  On  a  recent  occasion  he  has 
even  indirectly  acknowledged  their  merit,  by  exhorting 
his  subjects  in  a  proclamation  to  give  their  children  to 
the  Fathers,  rather  than  to  kill  or  expose  them."* 

In  another  place  M.  de  Hiibner  tells  us  what  he 
gathered    concerning    Chinese   converts — or   some  of 

1  A  Ramble  round  the  Worlds  1874,  M.  le  Baron  de  Hiibner,  vol.  ii., 
pp.  373-7. 


I 


410         THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

them.  "The  Chinese  neophytes  are  rarely  fervent; 
but  they  remain  faithful,  especially  as  long  as  they 
remain  in  their  native  villages.  Those  who  travel  a 
gfreat  deal,  and  remain  a  long  time  absent  from  home, 
or  settle  in  pagan  towns,  lose  their  faith  very  often, 
without,  however,  publicly  apostatising.  The  old 
Chinese  Christians  are  devoted  to  their  religion*  In 
Sze-chuen,  where  they  are  very  numerous,  they  have  a 
sense  of  their  own  importance,  and  defend  themselves 
vigorously,  sometimes  with  arms  in  their  hands,  against 
the  persecutions  of  the  *  literates.' "  ^ 

Of  the  Sz'ch  wanese  Catholics  Baron  Richtofen 
wrote,  in  1872  : — "  Whenever  I  arrived  at  a  place  where 
there  lived  some  of  them,  they  would  come  to  confess 
frankly  their  Faith  before  any  assembled  crowd.  I  got 
the  impression  that  they  are  true  and  devoted  Christ- 
ians, but  that  besides  the  religion  they  have  a  profound 
veneration  for  everything  connected  with  Europe."* 

About  1874,  M.  Piassetsky  was  at  Han-Tchong- 
Fou — the  scene  of  his  experiences  in  the  Buddhist 
temple,  previously  referred  to: — "A  Chinaman  who 
was  walking  along  the  river  [the  Upper  Han],  having 
seen  us  in  the  boat,  bowed  in  the  most  polite  manner 
and  took  off  his  hat,  which  is  a  thing  the  Chinese  never 
do.  •  .  .  Seeing  that  we  could  not  understand  much  of 
what  he  said,  he  next  pointed  to  a  cross  round  his  neck, 
which  showed  that  he  was  a  Christian  ...  a  doctor, 
and  had  embraced  Christianity  twelve  years  ago.  .  .  . 
Two  well-dressed  young  Chinamen  made  their  way 
through  the  crowd  to  speak  to  us,  and  not  being  able  to 
make  themselves  understood,  they  made  the  sign  of  the 
cross.  .  .  .  We  went  to  the  church  where  service  was 
taking  place.  On  the  left  were  twelve  Chinese  women 
on  their  knees,  on  the  right  twenty-five  men  singing  at 
the  pitch  of  their  voices.  It  would  not  have  been 
discreet  to  inquire  into  the  number  of  native  Christians, 

'  A  Ramble  round  the  World^  vol  ii.,  p.  425. 

>  Letter  to  Shanghai  Chamber  of  Commerce^  No.  vii.,  1872,  p.  48. 


Christianity  in  China  appearing  to  be  a  mere  matter  of 
grain,  and  only  embraced  from  interested  motives."^ 

At  Yungf-hsingf-ch  angf,  says  Mr  Hosie — then  Con- 
sular Agfent  at  Ch'ungf-k'ingf — a  solitary  Chinese  who 
was  some  200  yards  in  advance  of  the  crowd,  dropped 
on  his  knees  as  we  passed,  and  wished  **  the  scholar,  a 
prosperous  voyage  (scA^n  fu  p'insr  an — schin  fu  being 
the  term  usually  applied  to  Roman  Catholic  mission- 
aries). He  was  doubtless  a  Catholic,  and  mistook  me 
for  a  missionary."* 

In  1889,  Mr  Pratt  was  engfagfed  in  scientific  research 
at  Ta-tsien-lu  where,  "my  collectors  were  all  Christians, 
brought  up  from  childhood  by  the  Bishop  and  the 
Fathers,  and  were  in  a  much  more  civilised  state  than 
the  Buddhist  Tibetans  and  mixed  Chinese,  who  refused 
to  work  for  me."* 

Finally,  Major  KnoUys,  R.A.,  gives  us  the  impres- 
sions produced  by  the  work  of  the  Catholic  missions  in 
China,  thus: — "Compared  with  Protestants  it  has 
prospered,  and  even  absolutely  it  has  achieved  a  fair 
amount  of  apparent  success.  But  I  doubt  if  the  roots 
have  really  struck  deep,  if  they  would  survive  the 
slightest  intermission  of  labour,  or  the  slightest  tension 
from  persecution.  Their  teachers  have  carried  the 
doctrine  of  expediency  too  far,  etc.  etc."  *  So  much  for 
theory,  now  for  practice : — Says  Mrs  Archibald  Little, 
**  Of  those  who  have  been  converted,  I  have  come  across 
thousands  of  Roman  Catholics  who  have  borne  the 
burning  of  their  houses,  and  the  devastation  of  their 
property.  There  were  400  Roman  Catholic  refugees  in 
Chung-king  in  the  summer  of  1898.  Not  a  few  have 
been  killed.    And  in  the  West  of  China  several  cases 

1  Russian  Travellers  in  Mongolia  and  China,  18S4,  P.  Piassetsky, 
vol.  iL,  pp.  17-21-31. 

*  Parliamentary  Paper,  China  (2),  1884,  p.  31. 

^  To  the  Snows  of  Tibet  through  China,  1892,  A.  E.  Pratt,  F.R.G.S., 

p.  ^5. 

I  English  Life  in  China,  1885,  Major  Henry  KnoUys,  R.A.,  p.  aoi. 


412  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

have  occurred  where  men  have  been  offered  their  lives  if 
they  would  burn  incense  upon  Buddhist  altars,  and  have 
refused  and  been  martyred.  I  do  not  know  how  con- 
verts could  more  prove  their  sincerity  than  by  thus 
dying."  ^ 

And  this  is  corroborated  by  Mrs  Pruen,  of  the  China 
Inland  Mission.  "As  regards  U-man-tz's proclamation 
[1898],  the  best  comment  on  it  is  the  following  incident 
communicated  to  us  before  the  rebellion  was  stopped. 
A  Protestant  missionary  sent  a  native  agent  out  from 
Chung-king  to  collect  news,  who  returned  in  a  few  days 
to  tell  that  he  reached  a  market-town  near  U-man-tz  s 
region,  when  a  crowd  were  urging  an  aged  Roman 
Catholic  couple  to  recant,  but  both  husband  and  wife 
bravely  said,  '  We  have  trusted  Christ  a  long  time,  and 
we  will  not  deny  him.*  Thereupon  they  were  immediately 
beheaded."* 

Again,  during  the  Boxer  Rising  of  1900 — on  the 
same  authority.  At  Tai-ynen,  seventy  Christians  were 
brought  before  the  Governor  of  the  Province  after  the 
massacre  of  the  missionaries ;  to  whom  H.  E. — "  *  You 
rebellious  subjects!  I  have  killed  the  foreigners,  now 
you  must  give  up  the  foreign  religion.'  To  which  the 
elders  replied,  *  We  are  trusting  the  Lord  Jesus  to  save 
us  from  our  sins,  we  cannot  deny  him.'  They  were 
condemned  to  die,  but  recalled,  and  H.  E.  said,  'Why 
will  you  die  ?  you  are  Chinese  people,  and  I  do  not  want 
to  kill  you.'  But  they  replied,  '  We  are  trusting  in  the 
Saviour  to  save  us  for  ever,  we  cannot  forr^ke  him.' 
Again  condemned,  they  are  again  recalled,  and  some  of 
the  younger  members  of  the  band  exclaimed,  *  We  will 
not  recant.'  They  are  sent  to  the  gate.  On  reaching 
it  the  Governor  said,  'Pick  out  those  two  maidens.' 
They  happened  to  be  Roman  Catholics,  about  seven- 
teen years  old,  and  immediately  they  were  behe^ed. 

^  Intimate  China^  1899,  Mrs  Archibald  Little,  p.  171. 
*  The  Provinces  of  Western  China^  1906,  Mrs  Pruen  (of  the  C.I. 
p.  180. 


I 


VARIOUS  MATIERS— CONCLUSION  413 

Their  blood  was  caus^ht  in  a  basin,  and  mixed  with 
water,  of  which  the  remainingr  sixty-eight  were  made  to 
take  a  sip,  after  which  they  were  liberated."^ 

This  concludes  the  story  of  the  Catholic  Church  in 
China  from  i860- 1907,  as  gathered  almost  entirely  from 
non-Catholic  sources.  The  results  of  the  efforts  of 
Her  missionaries  will  be  found  in  the  ensuing  tables. 
Encouraging  as  these  may  seem,  it  has  to  be 
remembered  that,  be  the  population  of  the  Empire 
300  millions,  as  given  by  some,  or  450  millions  as 
estimated  by  others,  what  has  been  accomplished 
hitherto  is  but  a  fraction  of  the  work  remaining  to  be 
done. 

But,  if  China  is  ever  to  be  Christianised  in  the  true 
sense,  it  can  only  be  by  a  united  Christian  Church,  the 
component  items  of  which  must  teach  the  same  doctrine 
and  inculcate  the  same  practice.  Anything  short  of 
this  will  add  to  the  other  "blessings  of  civilisation" 
with  which  we  have  endowed  her,  either  a  profound 
religious  scepticism,  or  an  internecine  warfare  of  con- 
flicting sects,  both  of  which  may  be  seen  in  operation 
in  the  West. 

How  then  is  such  unity  to  be  arrived  at  ?  The  late 
Mr  Alexander  Michie  tells  us  that  to  organise  any 
deliberative  assembly  to  consider  a  Concordat  would  be 
**  a  revolutionary  innovation  on  their  traditional  methods 
of  procedure,"  for  the  Chinese:  while  for  the  "foreign 
missions,  it  would  not  be  a  very  simple  matter  to 
concentrate  effective  authority  on  any  selected  repre- 
sentatives " — and  this  latter  the  events  of  the  last  few 
years  have  abundantly  proved. 

Wherefore,  though  Mr  Michie's  standpoint  is  not 
ours,  we  nevertheless  arrive  at  the  same  conclusion : — 
"Other  hope  failing,  therefore,  it  seems  to  be  after  all 
to  the  Vatican  and  its  disciplined  agents  that  the 
Christian  world  will  have  to  look,  if  anywhere,  for 
extrication  from  its  dilemma  in  China;  for,  having 
'  The  Provinces  of  Western  China^  pp.  210-1. 


414  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  IN  CHINA 

been  repulsed  elsewhere,  it  is  to  that  quarter  that  the 
Imperial  Government  would  naturally  address  itself,  if 
the  personal  and  national  schemes  of  foreign  diplomatists 
would  but  permit  it  so  much  liberty  of  action."* 

^  Ckina  and  Christianity^  1900,  Alexander  Michie,  p.  176. 


APPENDIX 

A. — In  this  will  be  found  statistics  of  the  missions 
referred  to  in  the  foregoing  work.  They  have  been  obtained 
in  every  instance  from  China;  and  in  most  cases  by  the 
favour  of  the  Right  Reverend  Vicars-Apostolic  themselves, 
for  the  purposes  of  this  book.  The  compiler  desires  to 
testify  to  his  gratitude  to  their  Lordships  for  such  invaluable 
assistance. 

No  attempt  has  been  made  to  total  this  Table.  The 
numbers  do  not  in  all  cases  refer  to  the  same  date ;  nor  has 
the  information  been  always  given  in  the  same  form.  Its 
principal  object  is  to  show  the  magnitude  and  extent  of  the 
operations  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  China. 

B^  Cy  and  D  are  derived  from  statistics  gathered  by  P^re 
de  Moidrey,  S.J.,  of  Zi-ka-wei  (Shanghai),  to  whom,  as  well 
as  his  colleagues,  grateful  thanks  are  tendered  for  permission 
to  utilise  the  results  of  their  labours. 

B  contains  a  summary  of  the  personnel  employed  in  the 
Catholic  Missions  in  the  Far  East  in  1907 — ^the  latest  available. 

C  presents  an  account  of  Christians  (Catholic)  by 
Provinces,  and  the  percentage  of  the  whole  Catholic  Body  in 
China  formed  by  each. 

D  gives  the  latest  existing  conspectus  of  the  Chinese 
Catholics  by  Vicariates.  It  refers  to  1907.  For  sufficient 
reasons  all  missions  do  not  report  at  the  same  date.  It  is, 
nevertheless,  totalled,  as  being  the  best  obtainable  at  present 
No  attempt  is  made  to  give  the  actual  total  of  baptisms,  as 
it  is  not  known  with  any  accuracy,  e^.,  many  children, 
baptised  during  absence  of  a  missionary,  are  not  registered,  etc. 

The  same  is  given  for  Korea  and  Japan. 

E  shortly  summarises  B  and  Z>  in  a  form  easy  to  be 
remembered. 

F. — Statistics  of  Protestant  Missions  in  China,  1905. 

Note. — In  the  Appendix  the  orthography  adopted  by 
the  Chinese  Imperial  Post  Office  has  been  employed. 

416 


TABLE  A 


417 


TABLE  A 
Statistics  of  Catholic  Missions  in  China,  by  Vicariates. 

(In  most  cases  from  infomuUion  supplied  by  the  Vicars-Apostolic^ 


PEKING  AND  NORTH  CHIHLI. 
Lazarists. 

Vicar-Apostolic—'^,  R.  Mgr.  S.  Jarlin. 
Missionaries. 


Priests — Lazarist,  European 

38 

Marist  Brothers — European 

3^ 

Chinese 

12 

Chinese . 

7 

Secular,  European 

6 

Sisters  of  Charity     . 

50 

Chinese 

43 

Sisters  of  St  Joseph  . 

104 

Brothers — Lazarist  • 

5 

Masters      and     Mistresses 

rPriests  . 

II 

teaching  in  Schoob 

2,844 

Cistercians   Choir  Religious 

17 

Vierges  (Native  Sisters)  liv- 

.Lay Brothers   . 

41 

ing  with  their  families  . 

340 

Educational. 

I  Grand  S^minaire — Students      41 
I  Petit  „  „      .      180 

Colleges,  Normal,  19;  Stu- 
dents    .  .  .    1,079 
Boys,  European,  2 ;  Scho- 
lars        ...        39 
Girb,  European,  i ;  Scho- 
lars        .            .  .        62 
European     Studies,     4 ; 
Scholars            .  .      541 


Colleges,  ChinesejStudies,  6 ; 

Scholars  .  .123 

Schools,  Boys,  282 ;  Scholars  5,200 
Girls,  215  ;  Scholars  .  3,921 
for   Catediumens,  2,217; 

with  Adults       .  .  35,054 

Children   .  •  .    9,730 

Printing-press  .  .  i 


Charitable, 


2  Alms-houses — Inmates 
2  Orphanages,  with  Boys 
7  „  „     Girls     . 

Orphans     in     charge     of 
nurses   . 


90 

45 

547 

558 


Hospitals — Patients  re- 
ceived 1907-8  (July)  . 
Dispensaries  —  Cases 
treated  .  .  .  75,9^3 


1.491 


In  Mission  on  yoth  June  1908. 


Estimated  Population  lo^ooo^ooo 
Churches,  74 ;  Chapels  .  515 
Stations,  1,408  ;  Oratories  .  39 

Residences  of  Missionaries  50 


Chinese  Catholics  (exclu- 
sive of  Catechumens) .  138,568 
Catechumens  .  .   45,600 

Baptisms,  1907-8 — Adults.  32,749 
Children  of  Christians  .  4,502 
In  articuh  mortis,  Adults  146 
Children  of  heathen       .    10^488 


2  D 


418 


APPENDIX 


EASTERN  CHIHLI. 

Lazarists. 

Vicar-Apostolic—^  R.  Mgr.  F.  Geurts. 


Priests — European 
Chinese     . 


Brothers,  Nuns^  Catechists  . 


EducaHonal. 


Seminaries 
Clergry 
Students 


for      training 


2 
38 


Colleges  and  Schools 
Scholars 


67 


22 
324 


Orphanages  or  Asylums 
Inmates 


Estimated  Population 
Churches  and  Chapels 
Oratories  and  Stations 


Charitable. 

2 
24 

In  Missiafiy  1907. 

5,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

15  of  Catechumens)  .    5,823 

25      Catechumens  .  .    1,000 


WESTERN  CHIHLI. 

Lazarists. 

Vicar-Apostolic— 'R.  R,  MGR.  A.  Coqset. 


Missionaries, 


Priests— European 
Chinese 


15 
6 


Brothers,  Nuns,  Catechists  .      448 


Educational. 


Seminaries 
Clergy 
Students 


for      training 


Orphanages  or  Asylums 
Inmates 


Estimated  Population 

Churches 

Chapels 

Oratories  and  Stations 


2 
79 

Charitable. 

6 
i,iii 


Colleges  or  Schools  • 
Scholars 


Hospitals 
Dispensaries 
Cases  treated  (1906) 


84 
1.533 


5 

2 

39»I95 


In  Mission^  1907. 

8,000^000  Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

49  of  Catechumens)  •44,S<^ 

36  Catechumens  .  .   453^ 

.      282 


TABLE  A  419 


SOUTH-EASTERN  CHIHLI. 

Jesuits. 

Vkar'ApostoliC'-^  R.  Mgr.  H.  Maqust,  SJ. 

Missionaries. 


Priests— European,  Jesuits  . 
Chinese  (of  whom  lo  are 
Jesuits) 

48      Brothers— Jesuits  (of  whom 

5  are  Chinese)  • 
20     Others,  e^.  Catechists,  etc. . 

18 
1048 

EducaHanaL 

Seminaries     for      training 

Clergy   . 
Students 

Colleges  and  Schools 
2      Scholars 

ChaHtabU. 

• 

462 
7209 

Orphanages  or  Asylums 
Inmates 

5      Dispensaries 
150      Orphans     maintained 
Mission  in  families 

by 

22 
288 

In  Mission  en  \stjuly  1907. 

Population  .     7-8,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches  and  Chapels         .      334  of  Catechumens)  .  62,454 

Oratories,  Stations  .  .      328     Catechumens  .  8,036 

Adults    baptised    in     year 

1906-7    .  .  .   2,273 

In  each  of  the  four  sections  of  the  Mission  is  a  Central  College  for 
European  and  Chinese  studies ;  and  in  the  N  and  S  section  there  are 
Instructional  Workshops.  A  European-Chinese  Printing-press  is 
established  at  Changkiachwang. 

The  number  of  Christians  in  the  Mission  was—on  ist  July — in 
each  year : — 

1867     1860    1870     1880     18«H>     1900     1901     1906     1907 

9,505     io»030    Ift6i2    29,034    38,005     50,875    45,419    59*646    62,454 


420  APPENDIX 


NORTH  HONAN. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Milan. 

Vtcar-Apostolic—VL  R.  Mgr.  G.  Menicatti. 

Missionaries, 

Priests — European  .                    13      Religious  —  European,  3; 

Chinese     ...         2             Sisters,  Native,  50  .        33 

Catechists,       Masters  in 

Schools,  etc      .  .      203 

EduccUiorud, 


Seminary  for  training  Clergy 

I      Colleges  or  Schook— Boys  . 

44 

Students 

• 

. 

6         Scholars     . 

650 

Schools    for 

Children 

of 

Schools— Girls 

9 

Catechumens— Boys 

• 

no         Scholars    . 

164 

Scholars    . 

, 

, 

1,700 

Girk 

, 

, 

18 

Scholars    . 

• 

• 

370 
CharitabU. 

Orphanages  . 

a 

• 

3      Infants     collected     during 

Orphans 

• 

. 

40             year 

159 

Dispensaries 

. 

. 

6         in  charge  of  nurses 

226 

In  Mission  on  i^th  August  1908. 

Estimated  Population       7,000,000  Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches — Large,  European  of  Catechumens)           •   6^183 

style       .           .           .12  Catechumens                       .4,178 

Small  (Public  Chapels)    .        47  Baptised     1907-8  —  Adults      751 

Stations — with  Oratory        .        95  Children    •           .            -233 

without  Oratory    .           .123  Heathen  Children  baptised 

in  articulo  mortis  .   4,119 


TABLE  A 


421 


SOUTH  MANCHURIA. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Vicar-Apostolic— K.  R.  Mgr.  M.  F.  Choulet. 

Missionaries, 


Priests — European  . 
Chinese     . 

31      Nuns     (including      Native 
8             Sisters)  . 
Catechists     • 

Educational, 

244 
64 

Seminaries      for      training 

Clergy    . 
Students 

Colleges  or  Schools — Boys  . 
I          Scholars    . 
16      Colleges  or  Schools— Girls  . 
Scholars    . 

Charitable. 

75 
1,513 

59 
1,275 

Orphanages  or  Asylums 
Inmates— Old  Men,  54 ;  Old 
Women,  48 
Orphans    . 

12      Hospitals      . 
Dispensaries . 
102 

? 

3 

3 

In  Mission^  July  1907. 

Estimated  Population      10,000,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches       ...        14             of  Catechumens)           .j 
Oratories,  Stations   .           .        86      Catechumens 

Baptised    during    apostolic 
year,  1906-7 — Adults     . 
Children  of  Christians      . 
Children  of  heathen 

20,628 
6,950 

1,633 
3,682 

422 


APPENDIX 


NORTH  MANCHURIA. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Vkar'Apostolic—K.  R.  MGR.  P.  M.  Lalouyer. 


1896. 

1899. 

1900. 

1901. 

190S. 

190B. 

1904. 

1906. 

1906. 

Prieste— 

European  . 

... 

10 

14 

14 

14 

16 

18 

x8 

32 

Chinese     . 

•»« 

4 

4 

3 

2 

3 

3 

4 

8 

Catechists    . 

... 

22 

30 

3a 

34 

35 

37 

40 

41 

Native  Sisters 

».. 

35 

27 

28 

32 

35 

38 

41 

47 

Seminaries  . 

... 

I 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

3 

3 

Students .    . 

•«■ 

26 

35 

36 

30 

33 

40 

49 

47 

Schools- 

Boys     .    . 
Scholars 

... 

so 

44 

32 

38 

55 

77 

74 

81 

••• 

669 

950 

57a 

691 

1,236 

1,873 

1,7" 

1,755 

Girls     .    . 

... 

22 

29 

38 

27 

36 

44 

49 

5a 

Scholars 

... 

6SI 

807 

779 

833 

1,041 

i,a94 

1,35a 

1^6 

Orphanages- 

... 

7 

8 

8 

8 

8 

8 

8 

8 

Orphans 

... 

354 

350 

34a 

325 

337 

340 

33a 

318 

Chinese  Ca- 

tholics .    . 

6,556 

7,39a 

8.983 

8,926 

8,317 

10,161 

11,562 
7.670 

13.376 

14,934 

Catechumens 

430 

495 

763 

4,136 

6,869 

10,376 

8,735 

Heathen  bapt 

... 

736 

1,154 

188 

471 

1,007 

1,454 

x.9a4 

1,681 

Churches  or 

chapels .    . 

... 

45 

46 

48 

50 

62 

74 

86 

" 

Vicariate  formed  in  1898  \y  division  of  Manchuria.  Estimated  popnlatioo, 
io,ooo,ooa  In  the  Boxer  Risixie  of  1900,  most  of  the  churcfaM,  resideooes,  and 
schools  were  destroyed.  P&res  Souvignet,  Geoxjon,  and  Leray  were  miitantd, 
and  a  Chinese  priest,  P^   Tchang,  was   beheaded  in  the  town  of  P^tonii^ 

f?  Petuna]  after  "juridical  process."    Sixty  Christians  died  rather  than  deny  their 
aith. 

Peace  restored,  the  Mission — by  the  aid  of  indemnities — ^rose  from  its  ruin& 
Catechumens  increase  yearly,  and  the  Russo- Japanese  war  did  no  harm. 


TABLE  A  423 

EASTERN  MONGOLIA. 

Foreign  Missions  op  Scheutvbld. 

Vicar-Apostolic— '^i.  R.  Mgr.  C.  Abels. 

MissioTuines, 

Priests — European  .  38      Brothers        .  .  .  i 

Chinese     ...         9      Nuns.  .  .40 

Catechists  .  •71 

EducaHanal, 

Seminary  for  training  Clergy  i      Colleges  and  Schools  .        61 

Students        .  .  .20     Scholars        .  .    1,674 

Charitable. 

Orphanages  and  Asyloms    .  5      Dispensary  .  .  .  i 

Inmates        .  .  .      352 

In  Mission  on  311/  December  1906. 

Estimated  Population       5,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches,  Chapels    .  48  of  Catechumens)  .17,166 

Oratories,  Stations   .  18      Catechumens  .  .   6,890 

Adultsconverted  during  1906      728 

CENTRAL  MONGOLIA 

Foreign  Missions  of  Scheutveld. 

Vicar-Apostolic— '?L  R.  MGR.  J.  van  Aertselaer. 

Missionaries. 


Priests— European   . 
Chinese     . 

46      Nuns. 

23      Catechists     . 

Educational, 

II 
.        23 

Seminary  for  training  Clergy 
Students 

I      Colleges 
II      Scholars 

Schools— Boys 

Scholars    . 

Schools— Girls 

Scholars    . 

Charitable. 

:  "S 

49 
.    1,124 

Orphanages  or  Asylums 
Inmates 

8      Dispensary    . 
1,553 

I 

In  Mission  on  istjufy  1907. 
Estimated  Population  .         ?       Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches,    Chapels,   of  all  of  Catechumens)  •23,776 

kinds      .  .138      Catechumens  .   6,244 

Baptised  in  apostolic  year- 
Adults  .      600 
Children  of  Christians      .    1,228 
Children  of  heathen         .      977 


424  APPENDIX 


WESTERN  MONGOLIA. 
Foreign  Missions  op  Schbutveld. 
Vicar-Apostolic— '9i,  R.  Mgr.  A.  Bermyn. 
Missionaries, 

Priests — European  .  .        47      Native  Sisters  .  •         19 

Chinese     •  •  .  i      Catechists     .  .  .       215 

EducaHonal. 

Seminaries      for      training  Colleges,    Schools,    of    all 

Clergy    .  .  .  i  kinds      ...         84 

Students        .  .  -23      Scholars        .  .    2,316 

Charitable. 

Orphanages  and  Asylums    .  5      Hospitals  of  all  kinds  .  3 

Inmates        .  •  362      Inmates        .  .  .128 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population       3,500,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels         .        43  of  Catechumens)  .  1 19430 

Oratories  and  Stations  43      Catechumens  .  •    4,094 

Adults  converted  during  year    i  ,030 

Nearly  all  the  Catholics  and  Catechumens  live  in  places  where  they 
are  separated  from  the  Heathen.  This  aids  very  powerfully  the  instruc- 
tion and  education  of  Christians. 

Since  190Q,  Catholics  have  increased  from  5,000  to  11,43a 
In  1900,  Mgr.  Hamer,  the  Vicar- Apostolic,  was  killed  by  the  Boxers, 
together  with  many  of  the  Christians. 


ILL 

Foreign  Missions  of  Scheutveld. 

Prefect'Apostolic—V.  R.  Fr.  J.  B.  Steeneman. 

No  information  obtainable,  except  that  in  1907  there  were  6  European 
Priests  ;  the  Chinese  Catholics  were  about  300, 


TABLE  A  426 

NORTH  KANSU. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Scheutvbld. 

Vicar'Apostolic—K,  R.  Mgr.  H.  Otto. 

Misswnaries. 
Priests — European   .  19      Priests— Chinese  i 

Ediicaiional, 
I  College— Scholars  .        36      10  Schools— Scholars  .      234 

No  charitable  institutions,  but  priests  distribute  medicine  gratui- 
tously ;  and  each  supports  a  residence  containing  6  to  12  old  people. 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population      10,000,000  Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches  and    Chapels   of  of  Catechumens)           .  2,702 

every  kind         .           •        25  Catechumens            .           .  233 

Residences    ...        10  Adults  converted  in  1906  56 

The  Province  devastated  by  Mahommedans  is  now  (1907}  becoming 
repopulated.  Mahommedans  number  500,000,  and,  though  industrious, 
are  turbulent  Being  united,  the  Mandarins  dare  not  oppress  them; 
the  heathen  not  being  united,  the  Mandarins  do  as  they  please.  The 
few  Christians  are  very  faithful ;  but  the  Mission  is  hampered  by  want  of 
funds.  At  present,  the  Vicar-Apostolic,  his  twenty  Priests,  the  College 
and  Schools  depend  on  a  grant  of  23,000  francs  G6920)  per  annum,  and 
such  casual  alms  as  may  be  given. 

SOUTH  KANSU. 

Foreign  Missions  op  Scheutveld. 

PrefecUApostolic—V.  R.  Fr.  Evrard  Terlaak. 


Missionaries. 

Priests— European  . 
Chinese     . 

12      Nuns — Chinese 
3      Schoolmasters,      4;      mis- 
tresses, I 
Catechists 

In  Mission  in  1907. 

9 

5 
3 

Estimated  Population 
Churches  and  Chapels 
Oratories 

?      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
13            of  Catechumens) 
3      Catechumens 

Baptisms— Adults     . 
Children  of  Christians     • 
Children  of  heathen 

1,106 
626 

47 
60 

187 

426  APPENDIX 


NORTH  SHENSI. 

Franciscans. 

Vkar'Apostolic—^  R.  Mgr.  Athanasio  Goette. 

Missionaries, 

Priests— European  .                   17      Franciscan  Brothers  2 

Chinese  (of  whom  6  are                Nuns — European,  24;  Chi- 

Franciscans)  .           .        30            nese,  2   •           .  .26 

Catechists     .           .  .       165 

EditcaiionaL 

Seminaries      for      training  4  Colleges ;  32  Schools        .        36 

Clergv    ...  2      Scholars  .  •    SfiSS 

Students  (24  in  Greater,  56 

in  Lesser)  .        80 

Charitable, 

Orphanages  (Girls,  2  ;  Boys,  2  Hospitals,  2  Dispensaries .          4 

i)           .           •           -  3      2  Old  People's  Asylums;  4 

Orphiuis,  367,  and  772  Girls  Hospices  for  Poor         .          6 

with  nurses           .        .  1,139 

In  Mission  on  31J/  Decern^  1906. 

Estimated  Population       7,500,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapeb  186  of  Catechumens)  -24,077 

Oratories  and  Stations  233         Catechumens        .  .   4,265 

Adults  converted  in  1906     .      372 

The  Franciscan  Tertiaries  numbered  1,470.  Secret  impediments  on 
the  part  of  the  Mandarins  notwithstanding,  conversions  take  fJaoe 
in  every  part,  and  of  late  years  many  Chinese  Protestants  have  em- 
braced  the  Faith.  The  efforts  of  the  Fathers  are  often  paralysed  by  lade 
of  funds. 


TABLE  A 


427 


SOUTH  SHENSI. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Rome. 

Vicar-Apastolic—^  R,  Mgr.  P.  J.  Passerini. 

Missionaries. 


Priests — European  .15 

Chinese         .  .  .2 


Sisters— European,   10;    Chi- 
nese, 6       . 
Catechists 


EducaHonal, 


Seminary  for  training  Clergy .      i 
Students  .  .15 


2  Colleges—Scholars . 
Other  Schools 


Charitable. 


3  Orphanages  or   Asylums, 

inmates    .           .           .  380 

Hospitals  of  every  kind         .  2 

Dispensaries  ...  3 


2  Hospices  for   the  old,   in- 
mates 
I  Hospice  for  Lepers 
Infants  in  charge  of  nurses    . 


16 
66 


219 

19 


96 
620 


Estimated  Population       4,000,000 
Churches  and  Chapels  •      64 

Oratories — Stations  .  66 

1  Catechumenate  for  men  80 

2  Catechumenate  for  women .    240 


In  Mission^  1907. 

Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

of  Catechumens)          .  11,489 

Catechumens                      .  6,305 

Converted  during  1 906,  more 

than  200 

Baptismsduring  1906— Adults    163 

Children  of  heathen  345 


428  APPENDIX 


NORTH  SHANSI. 
Franciscans. 
Vicar-Apostolic^^  R.  Mgr.  Agapito  Fiorentini,  O.M. 
Missionaries, 

Priests—European  •      '5      Fratres  Laici^  European  4 

Chinese       .  .16      Franciscan  Sisters,  European       13 

Fratres  Clerici,  European      .        2      Native  Sisters  .  .       35 

Educational. 

I  Seminary  for  training  clergy,  85  Schools  for  Boys — Scholars  1,216 

Students    .  .15      57  Schools  for  Girls—Scholars  1,226 

I  College,  Students  .31 

ChantabU, 

Orphanages  and  Asylums      .        5  Hospitals  of  every  kind         .         3 

Orphans   (Boys,   95  ;    Girls,  In  which  91  old  men,  27  old 

497)                     .           •592  women  are  maintained  .     f  18 

Infants  with  nurses     .           .  1,307  Dispensary     .            .            .         i 
Girls  collected  during  year    .    998 
Died  during  year       .           .    892 

In  Mission^  ^ist  December  1906. 

Estimated  Population       6,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  .  .22  of  Catechumens)  .  17,357 

Chapels  and  Oratories  154     Catechumens  .    7,034 

Stations  .  .    269      Adults  converted  in  1906    .     1,859 

Children  of  Christians  bap- 
tised .  .       839 
Children  of  heathen  (orphans, 

etc)  .  .2,411 


TABLE  A  429 


SOUTH  SHANSI. 

Franciscans. 
Vkar-Apostolic^^  R.  Mgr.  Od.  Timmer,  O.F.M. 

Missionaries. 

Priests — European,  O.F.M.     .    25      Catechists — Men  .    73 

Chinese         .  .6         Women         .  •    30 

Educational, 

I    Greater  Seminary  —  Stu-  112    Schools  for    Boys — 

dents      ...  7             Scholars             .            .    1,637 

1  Lesser  Seminary— Students  13  103    Schools  for     Girls — 

2  Colleges— Students           .  55             Scholars                        .    1,356 

75  Schools  for  Catechumens 
— Men,  1002;  Women, 
777         >'  .    1,779 

Charitable. 

I  nfants  collected  during  year      233      Infants  adopted  by  Christians      44 
Provided  for  by  Mission    .     524         Died  .  .  •    675 

In  Mission  on  isthjufy  1907. 

Estimated  Population       6,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches      ...         38  of  Catechumens)  •  1493 16 

Public  Chapels  115      Catechumens  .  .   7,926 

Stations        .  .  .247      Baptisms— Adults    .  .      935 

Children  of  Christians      .      644 
Children  of  heathen  804 

Note.— Local  conditions  up  to  1907  have  been  unfavourable  to  the 
erection  of  hospitals. 


430  APPENDIX 

NORTH  SHANTUNG. 

Franciscans. 

Viear-Apastoiic^^  R.  Mgr.  Ephrbm  GlBSEN,  O.F.M. 

Missiatiaries, 

Priests— European     •  •      25      Fratres  Laid,  O.F.M.,  Euro- 

Chinese  •      19  pean        ...        4 

Catechists(men),  145 ;  (women), 
83.  .     33S 

CharUabU. 

Orphanages  and  Asylums      .       3     Dispensaries  .  .  .2 

Inmates  .    203 

Children      (abandoned  by 

parents)     educating  in 

Christian  families  .    719 

In  Missiony  1907. 

Estimated  Population  11,000^000  to  Chinese  Catholics(exdusive 

13,000,000            of  Catediumens)          .  23,568 

Churdies  and  Chapels               254  Catediumens                      .  1 5,755 

Oratories  and  Stations               447  Adults  baptised  this  year    .  1,775 


EASTERN  SHANTUNG. 
Franciscans. 
Vicar'Apostolk—^  R.  Mgr.  C.  Schang. 

Missionaries. 

Priests— European  .    24     Brothers,  8 ;  Nuns,  35  .  .43 

Chinese  .  .5      Catediists  .71 

Educational. 

Seminary        for        training  Sdiools*        .  .  •      45 

Clergy      .  .  .        i      Sdiolars*       .  .  .481 

Students      .  •33 

Charitable. 

Orphanage*  .  .  .        i      Hospitals*     ...        2 

Orphans*       .  •235 

In  Afissiony  1907. 

Estimated  Population       9,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exdusive 

Churches  and  Chapds                 53            of  Catechumens)           .  9^900 

Oratories  and  Stations         .      141      Bs^tised  in  1906— Adults    .  521 

Children  of  Christians  255 

Children  of  heathen         .  2,121 

*  From  best  accounts  obtainable,  but  some  years  aga 


TABLE  A  431 


SOUTH  SHANTUNG. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Steil. 

Vicar'Apostolk-^K.  R.  Mgr.  A  Henninghaus. 

Missionaries. 

Priests — European       •  .    45      Brothers^    lay    S.V.D.,*    13; 

Chinese         .  .  .12  Manst,  3    .  .  .16 

Sisters,  Franciscan,  16 ;  from 
Steil,  6       .  .  .22 

Educational. 

I  Seminary  (object  not  stated)  9  Chino-German   Schools — 

—Students  .  .      64  Scholars  .  .  .582 

I   <*Juvenatus"  (?  Secondary  42  Classical  Schools— Scholars  544 

School)  European  girls —  159   Other    Schools    (Boys, 

Students  .  .69  1,147 ;  Girls,  443)  .  i,S90 

I  "Juvenatus"  (?  Secondary 
School)  Chinese  girls — 
Students  .  •  .7 

Charitable. 

3   Orphanages    for    Boys —  3  Asylums  for  old  people — 

Orphans  .           .           .185  Inmates  .           .           •65 

3    Orphanages    for    Girls —  Hospital  (Tsingtau)    .           .        i 

Orphans  .           .           .    209  In  which  3391  cases  were 

Orphans  placed  with  families    202  cured;  5532 consultations; 

Orphans  received  during  year    113  and  223  operations  took 

place. 

In  Mission  on  \ithjuly  1906. 

Estimated  Population      10^000,000     Chinese  Catholics(exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels  147  of  Catechumens)         .   35,301 

Houses  of  Prayer  (?Ora-  Catechumens  .  .   36,367 

tories)  .  .  .        719  Since  Easter  1905. 

Baptised— Adults   .  .     4«3i3 

Children  .  .  .     2,242 

In  artioilo  iwr^— Chil- 
dren .  •     4t6oo 

*  Sociiias  VtrH  Dwini  (Society  of  the  Divine  Word). 


432  APPENDIX 

WESTERN  HONAN. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Parma. 

Prefect-ApostaliC'—V.  R.  Fr.  Aloysius  Calza. 

Missunuaiss, 

Priests— European  ,      8      Nuns — Chinese  .  .      3 

Schoolmasters .  .  .4 

Catechists         .  .  .26 

2n  Mission  in  1907. 
Estimated  Population  .  ?      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches  and  Chapels  5  of  Catechumens)  .    1,055 

Oratories  .  .  •19      Catechumens  .  .    3,000 

Bsmtisms — ^Adults    .  .        191 

Children  of  Christians^  59 ; 
of  heathen,  115  .  .       174 

Prefecture  formed  in  1906,  by  division  of  South  Honan. 

SOUTH  HONAN. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Milan. 

Vicar-Apostolic—^  R.  Mgr.  A,  Cattaneo. 

Missionaries. 


Priests — European     , 
Chinese 

13 
10 

Others  (Brothers,  Nuns,  Cate- 
chists),   European    and 
Chinese    . 

no 

Educational, 

Seminary  for  training  Clergy . 
Students 

I 
•      23 

Schools  for  either  sex 
Scholars 

• 

60 

670 

Charitable. 

3  Orphanages  or  Asylums- 
Inmates  . 

913 

Dispensaries  . 

• 

20 

In  Mission  on  ^ist  December  1906. 

Estimated  Population     15,500,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches  and  Chapels       .          73            of  Catechumens)         .  11,500 

Oratories  and  Stations       .        240      Catechumens          .           .  9,000 

Baptisms  during  year         .  3,000 

Up  to  1884,  Honan  consisted  of  one  Vicariate.  In  that  year  it  was 
divided  into  two ;  and  in  1906  a  further  division  was  effected  by  forming 
5  Prefectures  and  29  Sub-Prefectures  (of  the  Chinese  Administration) 
of  South  Honan  into  a  Prefecture-Apostolic,  confided  to  the  Society  of 
Foreign  Missions  of  Parma,  under  the  title  of  West  Honan. 

The  principal  residence  of  South  Honan  is  at  Nanyan^ifii,  where 
are  the  seminary,  schools,  an  orphanage,  together  with  a  beautiful  church 
in  European  style.  At  Kioshan  (near  the  Peking-Hankow  Railway} 
a  spacious  hospital  is  in  course  of  construction  (1907). 

In  the  Vicariate  generally  there  is  great  hope  of  conversions,  but  they 
take  place  gradually,  and  the  utmost  caution  has  to  be  exercised  in  the 
case  of  would-be  converts. 


TABLE  A 


433 


EASTERN  HUPEH. 

Franciscans. 

Vicar-Apostolic— K,  R.  Mgr.  Epiphanio  Carlassare. 

Missionaries* 


Priests — European  . 

24 

Brothers,  Nuns 

? 

Chinese 

17 

Catechists     . 

50 

EducaHafud, 

In    Seminaries  (object   not 

In  Schools  (Sancta  Infantia) 

stated)— Students 

25 

—Boys 

1,521 

Colleges    (preparing    for 

Girls 

366 

Seminaries)-~Scholars . 

.    16 

In    Schools    conducted    by 

Schools,  special,  for  lan- 

Sisters^Girls   . 

490 

guages* — Scholars 
Sdhools,  other  than  above 

236 

— Scholars 

2,603 

ChcaitabU. 

Heathen  children  collected 

Maintained    by    Sisters    in 

during  year 

157 

215 

Adopted— Boys 

9 

With  nurses— Giris  . 

805 

Baptised 

3,178 

Baptised— Girls 

1,196 

Died  .... 

2,219 

Died— Girls  . 

480 

Maintained  by  Missions 

485 

Old  people  cared  for  (men 

16,  women  76)   . 

92 

In  hospital :  admitted— 

men,  724  ;  women,  770. 

Sick  prescribed  for,  15,600. 
In  Mission  on  15M  August  1906. 


Estimated  Population  16,000,000 
Churches  and  Public  Ora- 
tories     .           .  .105 
Stations         •           .  •      256 


Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

of  Catechumens) 
Baptisms  since  15th  August 
1905— 
Adults 
Children  of  Christians 


23,304 


1,154 
891 


*  Two  of  these  schools  exist,  ooe  in  Hankow,  taught  by  Marist  Brothers,  the 
other  in  Wuchang,  of  which  the  masters  are  Franciscans. 


2  £ 


434  APPENDIX 

NORTH-WESTERN  HUPEH. 


Franciscans. 

Vicar-Afostalic—^  R.  MOR.  F.  Landi. 

Missiomxries. 

1 

Priests — European   .                   15      Brothers,  i ;  Nuns,  35  ; 
Chinese     ...        14            chists,  38 

Cate- 

74 

EducaHofuU, 

I     Seminary    for    training                i  College — Scholars. 
Clergy— Students         .         9     42  Schools     . 

: 

IS 
1,050 

CkantabU. 

Girls  681)           .           .      721 

In  Mission^  1906-7. 

Estimated  Population       6,000,000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels                 81            of  Catechumens) 
Oratories  and  Stations                   ?      Catechumens 

Baptisms  during  year — 
Adults 

Christian  Children 
Heathen  Children. 

17,211 
9r4O0 

1,25^ 

424 

3.716 

SOUTH-WESTERN  HUPEH. 

Franciscans. 

Vicar-ApostoliC'-^  R.  Mgr.  M.  Everaerts. 

Missionaries, 

Priests— European   .           .        19      Brothers 
Chinese     ...         8      Nuns 

• 

5 
II 

Educational, 

Seminary  for  training  Clergy         i      i  College,  ?  Schools . 
Students    ...         6      Scholars  (Boys,  702 ; 

Girls' 

? 

682)  1,384 

Charitable, 

2   Orphanages   (Boys,   58;  Hospital        .  .  .         i 

Girls,  241)         .  .      299 

In  Mission^  \st  July  1907. 

Estimated  Population       9,000,000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

Churches  and  Chapels        .       78  of  Catechumens)  .  10,94^ 

Oratories  and  Stations                  ?     Catechumens  .  6^384 

Baptisms,  year  1906-7 — 

Adults  .  1,069 

Christian  Children  .  331 

Heathen  Children  .  1,205 


TABLE  A  435 

SOUTH  HUNAN. 
Franciscans. 
Vicar^Apasiolic^K.  R.  Mgr.  J.  P.  Mondaini. 
Missionaries, 


Priests-^European 
Chinese     . 


I     Seminary    for    training 
Clergy — Students 


?  Orphanages — Girk 


Estimated  Population 
Churches  and  Chapels 
Oratories  and  Stations 


14      Brothers,  3 ;  Nuns,  14 
6      Catechists     . 

17 
50 

Educutiotml* 

ling                ?  Schools  with  Scholars 
12 

332 

ChariuaU. 

.      225 

In  Mission^  1906-7. 

iq^ooo^ooo      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
24            of  Catechumens) 
?      Catechumens 

Bajptisms,  1906-7— Adults   . 
Christian  Children 
Heathen  Children 

6,499 

1,000 

288 

^?! 
1,406 

NORTH  HUNAN. 
AUGUSTINIANS. 

Vicar-Apostolic^K.  R.  MGR.  L.  P£rbz  y  PArsz. 

Missionaries. 
Priests — European  .  24     Priests — Chinese  .         2 

Educational, 

Schools  (Boys,  18 ;  Girls,  11)       29      Scholars  (Boys,  246 ;  Girls, 

95)         .  .  .      341 

Ckariii^ie. 
2  Orphanages  with  Orphans      744 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population      1 1,000^000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches,  12;  Chapels,  20        32  of  Catechumens)  .   2,677 

Oratories  and  Stations  27      Catechumens  .   3,317 

Converted  in  1906-7— 
Adults       •  .  .      232 


436  APPENDIX 

NORTH  KIANGSI. 

LAZARIST& 

Vicar-ApastoUc—^  R.  Mgr.  Paul  Ferrant. 

Missionaries. 

Priests — European   .  •        17      Brothers,  Nuns,  CatecJiists — 

Chinese .  .  .  3         European  .  .  -34 

Chinese     .  .  .      lor 

EducaHanal. 

I     Seminary    for    training  47  Schools  with  Scholars     .    i^i 

Clergy— Students  22 

ChariiubU. 

4  Orphanages,  with  Orphans      571      Dispensaries  .  .  4 

Hospitals      ...         2      Sick  treated  in  1906  123^343 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population      10,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exdusive 
Churches,  19 ;  Chapels,  88  .      107  of  Catechumens)  .  11,397 

Oratories  and  Stations  55      Catechumens  .  .   8,861 

EAST  KIANGSI. 

Lazarists. 

Vicar-Apostolic^K.  R.  Mgr.  Casimir  Via 

Missionaries. 

Priests — European  '  .        17      Nuns  .  .  .21 

Chinese     ...         9     Catechists     .  .  .170 

Educational. 

Seminaries      for      training  Colleges  and  Schools  .        89 

Clergy    ...         2      Scholars       •  •  ,   2,515 

Students    ...        32 


Ckaritable. 

Orphanages  and  Asylums  .        15      Hospitals 
Inmates        .  •      505      Dispensaries 


14 


i^ispensanes  .  .  3 

Sick  treated,  1906    .  .  38,441 


In  Mission^  1907. 

{,000,000      Chinese 

-  •        49  of  ,  --^,-,. 

Oratories  and  Stations  61      Catechumens  .    3,500 


Estimated  Population       8,000,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  7;  Chapels  42      .        49  of  Catechumens)  •16,295 


TABLE  A  437 


SOUTH  KIANGSI. 

Lazarists. 

Vicar-Apostolic—^  R.  MOR.  N.  CiCERi. 

Missionaries, 

Priests — European  .  14     Nuns— European,   6; 

Chinese^  17        •  •        ^3 

Catechists     •  •  •        53 

EducaUonal. 

2    Seminaries   for  training  52  Schools  with  Scholars     •      820 

Clergy— Students  42 

Charitable, 

4  Orphanages  and  Asylums —  Hospitals      ...  2 

Inmates.  .      204      Dispensary   .  .  .  i 

Sick  treated  in  1906  .  27,840 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population     10^000^000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches,  8 ;  Chapels,  6     .        14  of  Catechumens)  .   8,637 

Oratories  and  Stations        .        16     Catechumens  .  .   2,932 


CHEKIANG. 

Lazarists. 

Vicar-Apostolic— R,  R.  MOR.  PAUL  Reynaud. 

Missionaries, 

Priests — European  •  29      Brothers,  5 ;  Nuns,  97         .      102 

Chinese     .  .18      Catechists     .  .  .277 

EducaOonaL 

3   Seminaries   for   training  115  Colleges  and  Schools — 

Clergy — Students         .        58  Scholars  .  .    1,207 

Charitable, 

12  Orphanages  and  Asylums  Dispensaries  .  .         9 

—Inmates  .    1,454      Sick  treated  in  1906  213,058 

Hospitals      ...        19 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population     20,000^000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches,  12  ;  Chapels,  1 19      131  of  Catechumens)  .25,126 

Oratories  and  Stations  203      Catechumens  •  •   8,683 


438 


APPENDIX 


KIANGNAN  (KIANGSU  AND  ANHWEI). 
JBSUITS. 

Vicar-ApastoliC'-K.  R.  Mgr.  P.  Paris,  S  J. 


Missionaries, 


Priests — Jesuits  (Earopean, 

131 ;  Chinese,  26)         .      157 
Secular      .  .  •34 

Scholastics — ^Jesuits   (Euro- 
pean, 13 ;  Chinese,  3)  .        16 

Brothers  —  Jesuits     (Euro- 
pean, 18;  Chinese,  10)        28 

Catechists     (Assistants    to 

Missionaries)    .  .221 

Masters   in    Schools,   703; 

Mistresses,  777  .  .    1,480 

"Vier^es"    in    service    of 

mission,  about  .  800 


Marist  Brothers  (European) 

Catechists     (Religious      of 

Chinese  Cong,  of  M^te 

de  Dieu) 

Nuns — Carmelite(European, 

13 ;  Chinese,  21) 

Aux.  du  Purg.  (European, 

58 ;  Chinese,  37) 
St  Vincent  de  P.  (Eoro- 
pean^  39  ;  Chinese^  3) 
Little    Sisters    of    Poor 

(European)    . 
Pr^sentanoines  (Chinese)  • 


38 
34 
95 


14 
179 


Educational. 
(Shanghai  and  neighbourhood.) 


Scholasticate  (training  college 
of  the  Society  of  Jesus)  .        i 

2    Seminaries    ior    training 

Clergy — Students  .      52 

I  College  for  Chinese, 
French,  English,  and 
Latin  studies — Students  .    266 

I  School  iDAurore) — Scholars  172 

I  Municipal  French  School — 

Boys        .  •  .251 

I  Marist  School  for  European, 
Chinese,  and  Eurasian 
Boys        .  .    549 

I  Boardmg-Schoolfor  Chinese 

Boys  .  -149 


I  School  for  European  Girls 

I  Boarding-School  for 
Christian  Girls  • 

I  Boarding-School  for  non- 
Christian  Girls  • 

I  Day-School  for  European 
and  Chinese  Girls 

I  School  for  European  and 
Eurasian  Oiphan  Girk 

I  School  for  Deat-mutes 

25  Other  Schools  for  Boys  . 

21  Other  Schools  for  Girls  . 


307 

I4« 
128 

357 

139 

17 

1,926 

1,728 


131   Boarding-Schools  for 

Boys     . 
102    Boarding-Schools  for 

Girls     •  •  • 

I  House  for  Catechists 


(Elsewhere.) 


5,905 

4,217 
18 


515  Other  Schools  for  Boys   12,417 
569  Other  Schools  for  Girls     8,276 


TABLE  A 


439 


ChaHtabU, 


2  Orphanages  in  Shanghai 
—Boys,  275  ;  Girls,  527 

39  Orphanages  elsewhere, 
received  during  year     . 

Orphans  with  nurses 

Orphans  confided  to  &milies 


802 

7,198 
916 

3i025 


4  Hospital^received  during 

year,  sick  .     4,062 

5  Dispensaries,  treated  sick  225,232 
5  Hospices  for  Aged — 

158  men  ;  207  women       365 


In  Mission^  \stjuly  1907. 


Estimated  Population      50,000^000 
Stations    with    Church    or 

Chapel   .  .  •    1,027 

Stations  without  Chapel      .      200 


Chinese  Catholics(exclu8ive 

of  Catechumens)         .  164,088 
Catechumens  .  .   95,013 

Increase       during       year 

(Catholics)       .  .11,215 

Other  works  include,  2  Observatories ;  i  Printing-press,  whence  issues 
a  Chinese  newspaper  (biweekly),  and  a  religious  pubhcation  (monthly);  7 
Workrooms,  where  300  women  find  employment ;  a  Catholic  Club  of  85 
Members;  a  Natural  History  Museum;  I nstructionai  Workshops  (building, 
joinery,  sculpture,  etc.);  and  239  Catechumenates,  where  12,668  men  and 
6,623  women  were  instructed.  In  works,  not  by  their  natture  exclusively 
Christian,  non-Christians  participate  in  the  benefits. 


CamparaUve  TabU^  1860-1907. 


186041 

1880.81 

1900-1 

1906-7 

Prierta      .... 
Stations     .... 

Adults  baptised*      . 

48 

77^18 
1,363 

87 
580 

99,154 
1,145 

1,046 

127.839 

3,875 

191 

1,337 

164,088 

7,983 

*  Including  those  baptised  in  danger  of  death. 


[KWBICUOW 


440  APPENDIX 

KWEICHOW. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Vicar-Apostolic—^  R.  Mgr.  F.  M.  Guichard. 

Coadjutor--^  R.  Mgr.  F.  L.  Seguin. 

Missionaries, 

Priests— European     .  48      Nuns  (?  European  or  Chinese)    109 

Chinese  •      17      Catechists       .  .     184 

EdtucUional. 
I  Seminary  for  training  Clergy  156  Schools—Scholars  .  2,336 

— Students  .       .  •      S^ 

Charitable. 

13  Orphanages  and  Asylums  Hospital  .1 

— Inmates  .  .    860      Dispensaries  .  .  •       72 

In  Mission  in  1907. 

Estimated  Population      10,000,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Places   of    Worship    of    all  of  Catechumens)  .  25,368 

kinds       .  .  .112      Catechumens  .  .22,825 

Increase  since  last  year — 

CaAolics  .  .     1,350 


NORTH-WEST  SZECHWAN. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Vicar-Apostolic—'^  R.  Mgr.  J.  Dunand. 

Missionaries, 

Priests — European                 .      38      Brothers,  European  .            .  3 

'*' '                                                    Nuns,  European  •  14 

Catechists,  Chinese  .            .  60 

Edttcational, 


Chinese       .  .  •45      Nuns,  European  •       14 

5,  Chine 


2    Seminaries    for    training  Schools,  337— Scholars         .  4,675 

Clergy— Students  .     108 

Charitable, 
5  Orphanages  and  Asylums  Hospital  .  .  .        i 

— Inmates  .  .132      Dispensaries  .  .  .46 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population  (?)  25,000,000      Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels  .      57  of  Catechumens)  .40,000 

Stations  .  .  .    328      Catechumens  .  .    8,672 

Adults  convened  in  1906     .    1,412 


TABLE  A  441 


EAST  SZECHWAN. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Vicar-Apostolic— K,  R.  Mgr.  Joseph  Chouvellon. 

Missionaries, 

Priests — European     .           .      47      Brothers,  European   .  3 
Chinese       .            .           >      41      Nuns    —    European,        5 ; 

"Vierges,"  Chinese,  521 .  526 

Catechists,  Chinese    .           .  191 

EducationaL 

3  Seminaries    for    training  Schools,  275,  with  Scholars  .  4,330 

Clergy — Students  .     140 

Charitable. 

4  Orphanages  and  Asylums —  Dispensaries,  besides .  .      76 

Inmates  .  .    225      ''Medecinsambulants''attend- 

Hospitals        .  .  •        4  ing gratuitously  on  heathen 

children    .  .  .60 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population    ?  1 5,000,000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels  131  of  Catechumens)  .51,861 

Oratories  and  Stations  .    285      Catechumens  .  .  17,000 

Baptisms    in    1906    (963    in 

articulo  mortis) — Adults  2,069 

A  lar^e  Printing-press  (Latin  and  Chinese  books  of  all  sorts). 

A  Chmese  newspaper  {La  Veriti)  weekly. 

A  large  paying  hospitail,  where  Christians  and  heathen  alike  are  cared 
for  by  Sisters  of  St  Francis. 

A  School  of  European  Languages  and  Sciences  kept  by  the  Marist 
Brothers. 


442 


APPENDIX 


SOUTH  SZECHWAN. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Vicar-Apostolic— YL  R.  Mgr.  Marc  Chatagnon. 


Priests — European 
Chinese 


Missionaries, 

45      Nuns  . 

13      Catechists,  Chinese 

Educational. 


6 
too 


2    Seminaries    for    training 

Clergy — Students  .     103 


Schools  250^  with  Scholars  .  5,000 


Charitable. 

6  Oiphanages,  and  Asylums  Dispensaries 

n>r  Boys  .  .    620      Dispensaries 

Hospitab        ...        5  children 


for     heathen 


5 

90 


In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population     20,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels  .      45  of  Catechumens)  .  26,000 

Oratories  and  Stations  .    400     Catechumens  .  .    5,000 

Adults  converted  in  1906     .    2,430 

At  Sui-fii — which  is  the  centre  of  the  Mission,  and  where  resides  the 
Vicar-Apostolic — ^the  head  of  navigation  on  the  Ying-tse,  there  is  a  large 
hospital  where  sick  from  the  Euroj[>ean  gunboats,  which  call  every  year, 
are  received  and  treated  by  Franciscan  Sisters.  Also  a  School  in  which 
two  missionaries  teach  European  Languages  and  Sciences. 


TABLE  A  443 


YUNNAN. 
Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 
Vicar-ApostoHc—YL  R.  Mgr.  de  Gorostarzu. 
Missionaries. 


Priests — European 
Chinese 

29      Nuns,  Chinese  • 

13      Catechists,  Chinese      . 

Educational. 

.    39 
.    51 

I  Seminary  for  training  Clergy 

—Students 
I  College  (recently  founded) 

— Students 
4  Gymnasia  (Languages  and 

Sciences). 

58  Boys'  Schools— Scholars  . 
30      41  Girls'  Schools— Scholars  . 

15 

919 
632 

Charitable. 

22    Orphanages,  with    Boys  Dispensaries  .  •  •      17 

and  Girls .  •  •    136 

In  Mission^  ^ist  December  1906. 

Estimated  Population      12,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches,  4 ;  Oratories,  81    .      85  of  Catechumens)  .  10,390 

Stations  visited  .181      Catechumens  .  .  13,097 

Adults  baptised  in  1906       .      514 

Mission  was  commenced  in  1843.  During  the  first  thirty  years  tumult 
and  sedition  raged  throughout  the  province,  reducing  the  period  of  work 
to  thirty-four  years. 

In  1900^  when  all  the  Empire  was  disturbed,  the  greater  part  of 
the  buildings  were  destroyed  or  burned,  taking  nearly  three  years  to 
reconstruct 

The  late  Vicar-Apostolic  died  (loth  January  1907)  at  the  age  of 
eighty-six,  sixty  years  of  which  he  had  spent  in  China.    (R.I.P.) 


444 


APPENDIX 


FOOCHOW. 

Dominicans. 

Vicar'Apostolic^YL  R.  Mgr.  SALVADOR  Masot»  O.P. 

Missionaries. 


Priests — European 
Chinese 


37  Religions,  European 
1 6      Nuns,  European 

Schoolmasters,  6o 
tresses,  45 

Catechists 


mis- 


I 

105 
60 


I  Seminary  for  training  Clergy 
— Students 


Educational, 

loi  Schools — Scholars 
8 


.  1,466 


Orphanages  or  Asylums 


Charitable. 
6 


In  Mission^  ^ist December  1906. 


Estimated  Population      17,000,000 
Churches  and  Chapels  .    112 


Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 

of  Catechumens)  .  4S9984 

Catechumens  .  .  22,000 

Adults  baptised  in  1906      .     1,025 


TABLE  A  446 


AMOY. 

Dominicans. 

Vicaf-ApostoliC'^YL  R.  Mgr.  G.  I.  Clementb,  O.P. 


Missumaries. 

.    17      Nuns— European,     10;    Chi- 
I             nese,  16     . 

Schoolmasters^       13 ;       mis- 
tresses, 14  . 
Catechists 

26 

27 
62 

Educatumal, 

y            Schools  (Boys,  31 ;  Girls,  26)  . 
•    33 

57 

CAaHtadlg. 

3      Dispensaries     . 

3 

Priests — European 
Chinese 


I  Seminary  for  training  Clergy 
— Students 


Orphanages  and  Asylums 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population       4,500^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels  48  of  Catechumens).  .4,242 

Oratories  and  Stations  16     Catechumens  .  .  .  4,773 

Adults  baptised  in  1906.        .     160 
Children   baptised   in    1906 

(Christian)  .  .     181 

Children   baptised    in    1906 

(Heathen)  .  .    784 


446  APPENDIX 


HONG  KONG. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Milan. 

Vtcar-ApostoUc'-^  R.  Mgr.  D.  Pozzoni. 

Missumaries. 

Priests — European  lo  Nuns — European  .    60 

Chinese         .  .           .10  Chinese         .  •           .60 

Brothers     of    the  Christian  Catechists — Chinese  .            .     33 

Schools      .  .12 

EduciUional. 

I  Seminary  for  training  Clergy  76  Schools  for  either  sex — 

— Students  .  .      16  Scholars.  •  .  2,500 

6  Colleges  for  either  sex — 

Students  •  •  •    i55 

CharHabU. 

5  Orphanages  with  Orphans  •    460      Hospitals        ...        6 
Houses  "S'tae  Infiuitiae"     .      16      Dispensaries  ...        8 

In  Mission^  3IJ/  Decern^  1906. 

Population    (in     the    entire  Chinese      and     European 
Mission),Chinese,3,2oo^ooo ;  Catholics  (exclusive  of 

Ind«,  Japanese,  etc,  3,000 ;  Catechumens)   .  .  13,275 

European,    4,000^  Total,  Catechumens  .  .    1,800 

3,207,000  Adults  baptised  in  1906       .      888 

Churches,  Chapels     •  84 

Oratories,  Stations     •  .123 

^  Clubs  (English,    Portuguese,    Chinese)~object,    recreation,    but 
Chnstian  instruction  is  given  also. 
4  Catechumenates. 


TABLE  A  447 


KWANGTUNG  (CANTON). 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Prefect-ApostoUc—Yi,  R.  Mgr.  J.  M.  Mbrel. 


Missionaries. 

Priests— European     .           .      70     Sisters  Catechists  of  M.  I.     . 

6 

Chinese       .           .           .      17      Sisters  of  St  Paul  (Chartres) . 

3 

Marist  Brothers— European  .       4      •*  Vierges,"  native,  remaining 

Catechists— Chinese  .           •    115             in  own  families    . 

359 

Sisters,  Chinese,  4;  Catechists, 

Chinese,  80 

84 

Educ€Uianai. 

I    Seminary    (Students,    14  i  College  for  Christian  and 

Cleric ;  52  Latinists)     .      66  heathen  Scholars            .    195 

I  School  for  Catechists  with  158  Boys'  Schools,  57  Girls' 

Students  .           .           .12  Schook    .           .           .215 

I     School    for     Europeans  Scholars  (Boys,  2500;  Girls, 

(Shameen)— Scholars           20  895)         .           .           -39395 

Working  Schools  (?  trades)  .       2 

CkariUtbU. 

1  Orphanage   (72  Boys) ;  8  i  Leper  Hospital— Patients  .      30 

do.  (395  Girls)     .  .    467      Dispensaries  ...        4 

2  Asylums  for  aged  men  and 

women  .  35 

In  Mission^  iqorj. 

Estimated  Population     30,000^000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels  .     120  of  Catechumens)  .60,000 

Oratories  .  .    364      Catechumens  .  .     ? 

Baptised  ?  in  i9o6^Adults  .  2,790 
Children  of  Christians  .  1,670 
Children  of  heathen  .   8,894 

Place  of  Pilgrimage,  Sancian  Id.,  where  St  Francis  Xavier  died. 


448  APPENDIX 


KWANGSI. 

Foreign  Missions  of  Paris. 

Prefect-Apostolic—^  R.  Mgr.  J.  M.  Lavest. 

Missionaries. 

Priests — European     .  27      Religious,  European  .  .        4 

Chinese       .  .  .4      Nuns — European,  6 ;  Chinese,  i     7 

Schoolmistresses  6 

Catechists       .  -Si 

EducationcU. 

I  Seminary  for  training  Clergy  26  Schools — Scholars  .    297 

— Students  .  .      20 

CharitabU. 

7  Orphanages  or  Asylums —  Hospitals  and  Dispensaries  .        6 

Inmates   .  .  -54 

In  Mission^  1907. 

Estimated  Population      10^000,000     Chinese  Catholics  (exclusive 
Churches  and  Chapels,   55;  of  Catechumens) .  .3,610 


Stations  ?  .  •    ?55      Catechumens 

Baptised  in  1906— Adults 
Children  of  Christians 
Children  of  heathen 


4,312 
5" 

135 

3y> 


TABLE  B 


449 


TABLE    B. 

Summary  of  Personnel  of  Catholic  Missions  in  the 
Far  East  in  1907. 

I.— CHINA  (INCLUDING  MACAO),  HONG  KONG,  AND 

TIBET. 


DoMription. 


Clergy— 
Bishops 

Priests — European 
Chinese  . 


Sbminasists 


Religious  (Members  of  Orders  or  Congrega^ 
tions  other  than  Priests) 

Men — European 

Chinese 

Women — European 

Chinese 

Non-Rbligious— 

Masters  and  Mistresses  in  Schools 


No. 


43 

1,346 

592 

i,ai5 


229 
130 

1,328 


7,802 


Total  of 
each  Glass. 


1,981 
1,215 


2,24s 
7,80a 


Note, — Catechists  are  not  included  in  the  above. 


II.— KOREA  AND 

JAPAN. 

Deseripldon. 

Korea. 

Japan. 

Number. 

Total. 

Number. 

Tbtal. 

I 

Clergy— 
Bishops 
Priests — ^European 

Native  .        . 

I 
46 
TO 

57 

4 

140 

33 

177 

2 

Seminarists  . 

9 

9 

23 

23 

3 

RSUGIOUS— 

Men    ...        . 

Ettfopean 

Native     . 
Women       ... 

European 

NaUve     . 

II 

41 

52 

? 

■? 

? 

281 

2  F 


460 


APPENDIX 


TABLE  C 

Number  of  Chinese  Catholics  by  Provinces.     1907. 


Chihli       . 

Kiangsu    . 

Szechwan  and  Tibet 

KwangtUDg 

Shantung  . 

Hui>eh 

Fukien 

Mongolia  . 

Kiangd 

Sbensi 

Shansi 

Anhwei 

Kwdchow 

Chekiang  . 

Shengking 

Honan 

Kirin  and  Amur 

Yunnan 

Hunan 

Kansu 

Kwangsi   . 

Sinkiang   . 


Total. 


217,947 

20 

136,096 

IS 

119.961 

n 

102,12s 

10 

72,838 

7 

52.549 

5 

51.299 

5 

48495 

5 

36.329 

3 

35.881 

3 

32.516 

3 

27.992 

3 

25.368 

2 

25,126 

2 

20,628 

2 

18487 

I 

15.823 

I 

11,389 

I 

9.176 

I 

7.985 

I 

3,610 

0 

300 

0 

Percent. 


Aff/r.— The  percentage  is  that  of  the  total  Catholic  Christians  in  China. 

TABLE   D. 

Chinese  Catholics  and  Catechumens  by  Missions. 
Increase.     1907. 

FIRST  REGION. 


MlMlODB. 

flfwigT'^Mrntlni^f . 

iBoreaae. 

ChihU       . 

N. 

Lazarists  . 

105.170 

14,553 

22,000 

1. 

E. 

.»        •        •        • 

5.823 

547 

1,000 

..          • 

W. 

..        •        •        • 

44.500 

2,620 

6.S30 

..          • 

S.E. 

Jesuits 

62,454 

2,808 

8,036 

Honan 

N. 

For.  Miss.,  Milan      . 

5.432 

832 

3.827 

Manchuria 

S. 

Paris 

20,628 

1,815 

6,9So 

.. 

N. 

..             ..          • 

15,823 

899 

Mongolia . 

E. 

„        Scheutveld 

17,466 

I.751 

7.100 

.. 

Cent. 

.1               .. 

23.776 

M76 

6.244 

.. 

W. 

.♦               ♦• 

11,430 

1.642 

4.094 

312,502 

28,943 

65.781 

TABLE  D 


451 


SECOND  REGION. 


HMona. 

0ongregstloii8. 

OstlioUcs. 

IO«^. 

CateobumcDB. 

Hi    . 

For.  Miss.,  Scheutyeld 

300 

Kansu 

N. 

n                        11 

2,702 

132 

233 

»»         • 

S. 

n                       i> 

1,106 

75 

626 

SheoBi 

N. 

24i392 

292 

5,000 

-    »» 

S. 

For.  Miss.,  Rome 

11,489 

389 

6,305 

Shansi      . 

N. 

FrandscaDS 

18,200 

850 

7,302 

^.  "         * 

S. 

II                •        • 

14,316 

1,012 

7,926 

Shantung 

N. 

u                  •        • 

23,568 

2,849* 

15,755 

II 

E. 

"          -     •        • 

9,900 

-500* 

1,500 

II 

S. 

For.  Miss.,  Steil 

39,370 

4.069 

43.324 

145,343 

9,168 

87,971 

In  1906  Shantung  B.  txansferred  three  sub-prefectures  to  Shantung  N. 
The  increase  in  the  two  vicariates  is  2349, 


THIRD 

REGION. 

MtBSlODB. 

CoDgregatlons. 

GathoUos. 

IxioreaM. 

Osteehomois. 

Honan 

w. 

For.  Miss.,  Parma    . 

1.055 

253 

2,000 

.,         • 

S. 

Milan     . 

12,000 

700 

6,000 

Hupeh      . 

E. 

24.792 

1,488 

20,000 

,, 

N.W. 

,. 

17,211 

1,154 

9,400 

,.         • 

S.W. 

,1 

10,546 

920 

6,384 

Hunan 

S. 

«.              ' 

6,499 

383 

1,000 

.. 

N. 

Augustinians 

2,677 

493 

3,317 

Kiangsi    . 

N. 

Lazarists  . 

11,397 

397 

8,861 

.» 

E. 

»,        • 

16,295 

995 

3,500 

.»        • 

S. 

„        • 

8.637 

837 

2,932 

Chekiang. 

... 

"        • 

25,126 

1.508 

8.683 

Kiangnan 

Jesuits      . 

164,088 

11,215 

95,013 

300,323 

20,343 

167,090 

FOURTH   REGION. 


Missions. 

Ckmgregatlons. 

OsthoUos. 

Increase. 

Oateohomena. 

Kweichow 
Szechwan. 

,1 

„ 
Yunnan     . 
Tibet 

N.W. 
E. 
S. 

For.  Miss.,  Paris 
»,              »,          • 

25.368 
40,000  ? 
51,861 
26,000 
11,389 
2,100 

1,350 

17,061 

2,000 

999 

50 

22,82s 
8,672 

17,000 
5,000 

13,097 
1,000 

156,718 

21460 

67,594 

452 


APPENDIX 

FIFTH  REGION. 


MlMtou. 

OoDgngations. 

GathoUos. 

iBcnaae. 

Foochow      . 

Amoy  (excL  Formosa) . 

Hong  kong 

Kwangtung . 

Kwangsi      . 

Macao  (Chinese  part)  . 

Dominicans 

For.  Miss.,  Milaii 
Paris 

„              „ 
Diocese 

47,057 
4.242 

14.195 

60,000 
3.610 

27.930 

17 

? 

25,800 

4,773 
1,000 

4,31a 

157.034 

6.996 

35.8«5 

SUMMARY  OF  TABLE  D. 


OatludiflB. 

IncEwae. 

OateehiuMns. 

First  Region 

Second    „ 

Third       „ 

Fourth     „                    • 

Fifth        „           .        . 

Totel  .       .       . 

312,502 
145.343 
300,323 
156.718 
157,034 

28,943 

9.168 

20,343 

6,996 

65,781 

87.971 

167,090 

35,885           , 

1,071,920 

86,910 

424,321 

KOREA 

AND  JAPAN. 

OatlioUos. 

InoiMso. 

GateohimiaiB. 

Korea. 

For.  Miss.,  Paris   . 

63,340 

2,050 

S,503 

JAPAN. 


GongiQgatiODs. 

OathoUos. 

9,435 
3,593 
43.709 
4,358 
S16 
2,240 

Increase. 

t 

OatoohuBcna. 

1 

Archdiocese  of  Tokyo  . 
Diocese  of  Osaka 

\]        Mandate  ! 
Shikoku(Pref.Apost). 
Formosa 

For.  Miss.,  Paris 
,,               ,» 

Dominicans 

,»                  • 

Total  in  Japan . 

-18 

-313 

863 

123 

16 

97 

... 

306 

92 

343 

63.651 

768 

741 

TABLE  E 


453 


TABLE   E. 

General  Summary  of  Catholic  Missions  in  China. 

1907. 


Missions       .... 

44 

Bishops 

43 

Priests— European 

1,346 

Chinese    . 

592 

Seminarists  .... 

1,215 

Religious — Men,  European  . 

229 

Chinese 

130 

Women,  European 

558 

Chinese 

i»328 

Chinese  Catholic  Christians 

1,071,920 

Increase  in  a  year  (at  least)  . 

86,910 

Catechumens  (at  least) 

424,321 

TABLE 

Statistics  of  Protestant 


FOBBGll  MlSBfOMABiaB. 

J 

GmiraB 

"1 

MeUMdofGhnrob 

i 

1 

1 

^ 

^ 

i 

1 

D 

f 

J 
a 

Congregational   (Bap- 
tists,  Conn'e^tion- 
alists,  Friends) 

9 

339 

126 

198 

563 

1,272 

56 

990 

192 

i 

Episcopalian 

3 

155 

138 

100 

393 

378 

55 

491 

136 ! 

Methodist   . 

7 

163 

109 

136 

408 

1,025 

135 

1,584* 

234 

Pre8b3rterian 

II 

242 

155 

169 

566 

1,100 

67 

I.158 

153 

Interdenominational, 
including    Staff    of 
Bible  Societies   and 
Y.M.C.A.        .        . 

9 

431 

341 

288 

1,060 

920 

18 

1.040 

146 

Unclassified,  including 
Continental  Societies. 

34 

172 

60 

115 

347 

407 

14 

459 

36 

Independent  and  Un- 
connected Workers  . 

Totals        .        . 

... 

41 

35 

32 

108 

... 

... 

... 

.., 

63 

1.443 

964 

1,038 

3,445 

5,i<» 

345 

5.723 

887 

*  Including  Local  Preachers. 


^  A   Ctntury  0/  ProUstant  Missions  in  Cinnr,  1907, 


Missions  in  China}    1905. 


WOBUBB. 

Bdugation. 

(3 
1 

Method  of  Church 
Government. 

Ij 

i 

5 

1 

^1 

1 

98 

637 

1,973 

544 

11,527 

79 

3,443 

40.724 

Congregational  (Bap- 
tisu,  Congregation- 
alists.  Friends). 

43 

599 

1.324 

438 

8.482 

51 

1,316 

22,055 

Episcopalian. 

83 

58a 

a,6o8 

391 

9,400 

71 

4,174 

27,546 

Methodist. 

120 

374 

1,77a 

453 

6,665 

68 

3.051 

52.258 

Presbyterian. 

9 

190 

1,403 

143 

2,209 

75 

1,345 

16,029 

Interdenominational, 
including  Sta£F  of 
Bible  Societies  and 
Y.M.C.A. 

H 

301 

824 

228 

4i263 

45 

1,808 

I9i639 

Unclassified,  includ- 
ing Continental 
Societies. 

Independent  and  Un- 
connected  Workers 

367 

3,583 

9,904 

2,196 

42,546 

389 

15,137 

178,251 

edited  by  D.  MacGillivray,  page  674, 


466 


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Works  on  China  and  Missions  in  general,  all  of  which 
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INDEX 


Agency,  Native,  lo 

Alcock,  Sir  R.,  i6, 141-2, 163, 180-1, 

2SS,  267 
America,  anti-Chinese   movement 

in,  208  to  216 
"  Holy  Catholic  Church  »  of,  8, 18 
United  States  of,  152,  264 
Americans,    197,    254;     Chinese 

feeling  towards,  230-2 
Amherst,  Lord,  137-8 
Amhersty  The^  138 
Amoy,  136, 196, 232, 314,  337, 343-9 
Anti-Chinese    movement    abroad, 

206  to  223 
Anti-foreign  feeling  in  China,  133-4- 

6-8-9,   165,   177-8,   192,   228-9 

230-1-2-5,  259,  260-1-2-3,  349, 

350-5 
Anti-foreign  riots,   1 20-1 -2,  258-9, 

260-1-2-3,  294-5-7,  368 
Apostolic  Succession,  the,  11,  12 
ArraWy  The,  143 
Asceticism,  302  to  305 
Australia,  anti-Chinese  movement 

in,  218  to  220 


B 


Baptism,  21-2,  30,  45,  85 
of  children  in  articulo   mortis^ 
296,405 

406 


Benjamin,  Mgr.,  310 
Bible,  the,  42-3, 68  to  88, 96  to  107, 
288 
Circulation  o^  55  to  63,  275 
Disposal  o^  94-5 
Translations  of:  Pidgin-English 
(proposed),   53;  Protestant, 
44  to  53 ;  Roman  Catholic, 
43-4,  288 
Bonin  Ids.,  suggested  occupation 

0^139 
Boxers,   173-4-5,  200-2,  299,  329, 

364,  399,  412 
Bribery,  365-8-9,  370-1 
Buddhism,  Buddhists,  109, 241, 285, 

292-4,  318,  322-3 
Buddhist  temple,  service  in,  402 


Cadoux,  P^re,  315 

Campaign,  North  China :  of  i860, 

145  to  149 ;  of  1900-1,  175-6, 

199  to  202 
Canada,    anti-Chinese    movement 

in,  216  to  218 
Canton,      134-5-7-8-9,      141-2-3-4, 

161-3,  180-1-8,   191,  253,  261, 

305,  314,  320, 345-7-8, 368,  375, 

387 
Cartoons,  Chinese  labour,  221-2 
Celibacy,  2,  3,  108-9,   110-1-2-4-5, 

124-5-9,  304-5 

26 


466 


INDEX 


Changkeawhan,  147 

Chauveau,  Mgr.,  306 

Chefoo,  125,  171,  192 

Chckiang,  124,  336 

Ch'eng-tu  (Chentu),   118,   120-1-2, 

259,278,315,388 
Chihli  (Tche-li),  124,  299 
Children,    Chinese,  sale    o^    296^ 

342-4-5-6,351 
of  Protestant  missionaries,  109, 
1 17-8-9,  120-1-2-3-4-5-7-8 
China    Inland    Mission,    7,    109, 
116,  290,  323,  330,  343,  404, 
412 
Chinese    children,   sale    of,    296, 
342-4-5-6,  351 
death-bed,  404 
Immigration,  206  to  223 
Nuns  (Sisters),  294-9,  390 
Officials,  366  to  371 
opinion  on :   Christian  religion, 
17,  240  to  247 ;  Europeans, 
136, 153,203, 225.6-9,230-3-4 
to  239 ;  Litigation  Question, 
246,   369;    French    Protec- 
torate   of    Missions,    256 ; 
Western  civilisation,  224 
pharmacy,  335 
placards,  104,  226,  295,  334 
priests  (Roman   Catholic),  287, 

293-9,  301,  327,  385,  408 

Chinkiang,  5,  261 

Christianity,  how  regarded,  107, 
185,  249,  260,  272 

Christians,  Native,  15,  16,  198-9, 
250,  263-4,  286,  299,  300^  310, 
318-9,  320-2,  357-8-9,  361-2-3- 
4-5-6, 399,  400-1-6-7-8,  410.1-2 

Ch'ung-Ch'ing    (Chungking),    278, 

306,411 
Circular,   Missionary,  of  Chinese 

Government,    253,    332,    352, 

357-8,  393-4 
Civilisation,  Western,  179,  192-3-9, 

273  ;  Chinese  opinion  on,  224 
Classics,  Chinese,  103,  258,  382-5 
Clause,  Spurious,  in  Treaty,   149, 

150-1 


Commerce,  Foreign,  155-6-7-8-9, 
160-1,  253-4,  266,  276 

Common  Prayer,  Protestant  Book 
o^  10 

Concessions,  154*  166-7-8 

Conference,  Centenary  of  Pro- 
testant Missionaries,  1907,  27 
to  41 

Confessional,  286,  318-9,  403 

Conversation,  Daily,  of  Chinese^ 
103 


Death-bed,  a  Chinese,  404 
Deposit  of  Faith,  12 
Desfl^ches,  Mgr.,  306 
Dirt,  etc,  of  Chinese  towns,  311, 
312  to  315 


Edicts,  Imperial,  233,  371 
Education,  272,  290^  382  to  392, 406 
of  Chinese  in  English,  183,  193, 
287 
England,  English,  135-7-8, 140-1-3- 

4.5^8-9,  1 5 1-2-5, 162-5-9,  170- 

1-2,  306,  383 
Europeans :  136, 234, 254  ;  Chinese 

opinion    on,     136,    153,    203, 

225-6-9,      230-3-4     to      239; 

influence  and  example  o^  179 

to  205 
Examinations,  Official,  57,  176^  382 
Extra-territoriality,  180,  254,  263- 

4-5-6,  381 
Extreme  Unction,  Chinese  account 

of  administration  o^  404 


Faith,  Deposit  of,  12 
Favier,  Mgr.,  231,  313,  395-7 


INDEX 


467 


Foochow,  i88,  336 

Foreigners  in  China,  153,  182  to 

205,  225-6-7,  234  to  240,  259, 

260-1-2-3,  276 
Formosa,  135,  262,  338 
France,  i44-9»  151,  i63-4-5-«-9i  ^7h 

251-5-6,  262,  401 
Franciscans,  289,  304 
French,  see  France 
Fulden,  1 1,  321,  337,  343 
Fusan,  119 


I 


Ichang,  259,  261,  310,  354 
Immigration,     Chinese,     206     to 

223 
Immorality,  186-7-9^  190- 1, 204,  276 
Indenmities,  140-9,  169,  176,  328, 

368,  401 
Infemticide,  335  to  344,  409 
"  Injurious  suspicions,"  294,  333-4, 

403-4 
Intemperance,  19 1-3,  204,  276 
Italy,  171 


German-y,  162-8-9,  170-1-2-6 
Graves,  Violation  of,  175,  295 
Gray,  Ven.  J.  H.,  191 
Great  Britain,  see  England 
Gutzlaff,  Rev.  C,  56,  139,  275 


J 


Japan-ese,  165, 176^  262 
Jesuits,  285,  290-1.4,  315,  330,  354, 
382-3-5-6-7-8 


H 


Hague,  Peace  Conference  at  The, 
166 

Hamer,  Mgr.,  300 

Hankow  (Hankau),  9, 162, 172,  291, 
304,  314,  335,  354,  387,  390 

Hart,  Sir  Robert,  155-7,  173-8, 
19 1-9,  202,  316 

Heathen,  non-admission  of  to 
Christian  services,  401  to  403 

Holland,  134,  207 

Holy  Communion,  views  of  Pro- 
testant missionaries  concern- 
ing, 22 

Honan,  16,  124,  260 

Hong-kong,  140-1-2, 187-8-9,  190-1, 
254,  275,  340,  368 

Hospitals :  Chinese,  347-8-9 ; 
European,  251,  290-1, 325, 354, 

387 
Hunan:   58,   162,  226,  282,  362; 
publications,   96-7,   230^    294, 

334,404 
Hupeh,  331,  362 


Kalgan,  112,  326 

Kansu,  241,  278 

Kewkiang,  305 

Kiangsi,  107 

Kiao-chao  (Kiachau),   162-9,   170, 

329,330 
Korea,  271 
Kowloon,  149,  170 
Kwangchow,  171 
Kwang-si  (Quangsi),  59,  144,  169 
Kwangtung,  9,  171 
Kweichow,  336^  358,  394 


Lazarists,  386 
Ukin,  171,  344 
Li  Ping-heng,  172 
LiteraHy     the     Chinese, 
227-8-9,  249 


103-7, 


468 


INDEX 


Literature,  Christian,  60  to  66 
Protestant,  presented  to  Emperor 
of  China,  56-7 
Litigation,  246-7,  327-8,  357  to  381 
Looting,  145-6-7.8,  200-1-2,  215 


M 


Macao,  135-7,  182-7,  254 
Manchuria,      262,      292-3,      308, 

3i3t  354 
Mandarins,  interviews  with,  232-3 
Marriage  of  missionaries,   108  to 

129 
Memorials   to   Throne,   107,  157, 

226,  258 
Ministers,  foreign,   accredited   to 

China,  144 
Mission-8-aries,     Christian,      149, 

168.9,      186,     249,      250-1-3, 

260-1-3-5-6-7,  272-3-6 
Missions  ^trcmgires^  291-2,  300-1- 

5-7 

Missionaries — 
Protestant,  6,  98,  104-9,  183-6-9, 
191-4, 203-4, 249, 251-2  6-7-9, 
271-4,  281-3,  298,  302-3,  321- 
2-5-6-7-8-9,  330-3,  360-1-4, 
392-5,  401-2-4 
Roman  Catholic:  2,  3,  55,  107, 
112, 150, 162-9, 170, 249, 251- 
4-6-9,  264-7,  408 ;  according 
to  Protestant  missionaries, 
287,  318  to  331 ;  apprecia- 
tion of  by  others,  281-3-4-5- 
8-9,  291-2-3-4-6-7-8-9^  306-7- 
8-9,  310-1-5-6,  383-4-8;  at 
home,  304  to  317 ;  at  work, 
274  to  301  ;  first  in  the  field, 
277  to  281 ;  found  every- 
where, 281  to  284 ;  mortality 
among,  305,  313 

''Modem  improvements''  and  the 
Chinese,  157  to  160 

Muk-den,  262,  300,  329 


N 

Nanking,  56,  141,  258 

Native   Christians,   15,   16,   198-9, 

250,  263-4,  286,  299,  300,  310. 

8.9,  320-2,  357-8-%  361-2-3.4-5 

(h  399,  400-1-6-7-8,  410-1-2 
New  Zealand,  anti-Chinese  move- 

ment  in,  220 
Ningpo,  343.  389,  390 
Nuncio,  Papal,  to  China,  proposed, 

255,  360 
Nuns  (Sisters) :  294,  330,  353-4-5-6, 

389  to  393-9^  406 ;  massacre 

of,  at  Tientsin,  349  to  353 


Official  rank  of  missionaries,  329, 
394-5,  401 

Officials,  Chinese,  366  to  371 

"Open  Door,"  the:  154,  272; 
Christian  version  of  tiie  same, 
206  to  223 

Opinion,  Chinese  on:  Christian 
religion,  17,  240  to  247 ;  Euro- 
peans, 136,  153,  203,  225.6-9, 
230-3-4  to  239;  Litigation 
Question,  246^  369;  French 
Protectorate  of  Missions,  256 ; 
Western  civilisation,  224 

Opium,  140,  185-7,  190-3,  204,  230, 
267,  276 

Orphanages :  Chinese,  347-8-9, 355 ; 
European,  290^  3323,  353  to 
356,  409 


Pao-ting-fu,  392 

Parkes,  Consul,  145,  162 

Peh-tang,  145-6-7 

Pei-ho  Forts  (Taku),  144-5,  ^76 


INDEX 


469 


P'ci-t'ang,  the  (Catholic  cathe- 
dral, Peking),  255,  385,  395 
to  400 

Peking:  137-8,  145,  175,  198  to 
202,  230-1,  286,  313,  339,  342, 
364-8,  387 ;  Gazette,  339,  364, 
396 

Pe-Tche-li  (Chihli),  299 

Phannacy,  Chinese,  335 

Philippine  Ids.,  207 

Pictures,  obscene,  importation  of, 
184-5,  204 
religious,  loi 

Pidgin-English,  proposed  transla- 
tion of  Bible  into,  53 

Placards,  Chinese,   104,  226,  295, 

334 
Population,  reading,  of  China,  89 

to  94 
Port :  Arthur,  170 ;  Hamilton,  165 
Portuguese,  134-5-7,  I43 
Poverty,    Chinese,    95,    159,    160, 

349 
Preaching,  324-5-6 
Presses,  printing,  66,  290 
Prisons,  Chinese,  377  to  380-1 
Proclamations,  official,  93, 143,  281, 

295.6 
Protectorate  of  Missions  :  149, 247, 

254-5 ;    Chinese   opinion    on, 

256 
Protestantism,  effects  of,  in  China, 

3,22 


Railways,  156-8,  166-7-8-9,  170-6 
Rank,  Official,  of  missionaries,  329, 

394-5,  401 
Reading  population  of  China,  89  to 

94 
Real  estate,  tenure  of^  363 
Riots,  anti-foreign,  120-1-2,  258-9, 

260-1-2-3,  294-5-7,  368 
Russia-n,  152,  165,  170-1-5 


Science,  98,  227,  291,  385,  388 
Schools,  8,  64,  89,  100,  125-7,  189, 

251,  287,    290-3,    323-4,    353, 

382.5-6-7-9,  406 
Sects,  4,  5,  6,  9,  10,  ",  13,  14,  15, 

16,  17,  18,  19,  22-3-4 
Se-non,  408 
Shanghai,  9,  11,  141-2,  186-8,  197, 

204,  284,  290,  314,  344-7,  382-8 
Shansi,  123-4,  168  229,  340,  407 
Shantung,  118,  124, 169,  170-2,  229, 

314,  324,  330 

Shensi,  344 

Sian-fu :  203  ;  Tablet  of,  133 

Slave-ry,  204,  377 

Societies :  Protestant  missionary, 
number  o^  4;  Bible,  opera- 
tions of,  60  to  63,  87-8; 
Christian  Literature,  65 ;  Tract, 
60-1-3-4-5 

^'Spheres  of  Influence,"  154,  165 

Sz'ch'wan  (Szechuan),  66,  120-2, 
169,  259,  277-8,  292-7,  307,  3",* 
344,  394,  401,  410 


T'ai  P'ings,  105-6-7,  249 

Tai-yuen,  412 

Taku,  144-5,  176 

Ta-Li-Fu,  277-8,  288 

"Term  Question,"  14,  19,  20-1,  45, 

51-2 
Theology,  Protestant,  7,  84-5 
Tientsin :  145,  333,  380 ;  massacre 

of  Sisters  at,  349  to  353 
Torture,  372  to  377,  380-1,  400,  407 
Tracts,  Protestant,  60,  loi 
Transubstantiation,  335 
Treaties,  149,  152, 176-7,  235,  265 
Treaty  Ports,  140,  169,  193-7 
Tsungli  YameHy  the,  42,  176,  209, 

212,  230,  380,  394-7 
Tt  Coo,  288 


470 


INDEX 


U 

Union,  14,  15.  23-4,  27  to  41 
United  States  of  America:    152, 

264;  anti-Chinese  movement 

in,  208  to  216 
Unity,  4,  24-5-6,  317 


Venault,  P^re,  293 


Wuhsneh,  259 
Wuhu,  294-5,  334 


Yang-tse,  the  river,  286^  291,  300, 

336,  383 
"Yellow  Peril"  the,  208,  273 
"Young  China,"  197,  274 
Yuen-ming  Yuen,  145 
Yunnan,  158,  282,  297-8 


W 

Wai-wu-pu^  the,  176 
Wei-hai-wei,  170 


Zi-ka-wei    (Sicca wei),  285,    290-1, 
353,  382-5-8 


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